A new pediatric emergency clinic is now open in Saint-Eustache, Que., with hopes it will alleviate pressure on hospital emergency rooms in the Greater Montreal area. The team of doctors behind the facility also hope it will offer a glimpse of the future for emergency care in Quebec.
“We’re actually able to challenge the status quo and say ‘Okay, why can’t the experience of emergency care for kids be positive,'” said Dr. Sasha Dubrovsky, the president and co-founder of the UP Centre for Pediatric Emergencies and Specialized Care, which opened a similar facility in Brossard, in 2019.
Parents can book an appointment for their child on Bonjour Santé for any emergency that doesn’t require 9-1-1, such as fevers that last longer than a week, bladder infections, broken arms, cuts and so on.
“The appointments are opening every 24 hours,” Dubrovsky said.
Patients are triaged and given immediate care instead of waiting for hours as they would in a hospital emergency room. Nurses provide care at the door. At the Brossard clinic, most patients are seen within 90 minutes, Dubrovsky said, adding “we’re seeing close to 80,000 kids a year, which is about 200-250 patients a day.”
After 10 days of operation, the Saint-Eustache clinic is already seeing between 100-120 patients a day.
“Patients and families come in quite anxious when they are faced with certain emergencies, and our goal is to dedramatize that,” said Dr. Mher Barbarian, co-founder and medical director of UP Centre.
Laval resident Sophia Loggia’s son Adriano had breathing problems last year resulting in a trip to the hospital where she waited 16 hours. Her first experience at the Brossard clinic went a little differently.
“They took him right away,” Loggia said. “Ten minutes from the time I walked in to the time he was assessed by the doctor and got the medication.”
Rania Shiftshy was able to get an appointment for her son on the same day. “This service is very good because it helps people to have an appointment for their children, easy without any complications.”
The clinics, located off the island of Montreal, are expected to help reduce emergency room visits and aim to help families avoid travelling to pediatric emergency rooms in the city. So far, there are no plans to open on-island facilities, but the doctors who own UP Centre say they are open to discussion.
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