Users’ Rights Week: working to protect healthcare rights

By Lawrence Belanger, Local Journalism Initiative
Users’ Rights Week: working to protect healthcare rights
It’s not idle conversation when members of a CIUSSS de l’Estrie-CHUS users’ committee get together. There are often important issues to discuss, and rights to protect. (Photo : Courtesy)

Given the ongoing impact of COVID-19 and the shortages of workers and medications, Eastern Township’s healthcare users are no strangers to the woes of accessing healthcare in the province. However, users’ committees spread across the province are supposed to provide accountability and recourse.
Users’ committees, part of the public system in Quebec, are a mechanism for healthcare users to exercise their rights. According to Quebec law, healthcare users have 12 rights in the public system, and the committees are charged with keeping users informed about them. Made up of users of the public health system, a users’ committee’s members work to protect the rights of all individuals who receive care and services from a health and social services institution in Quebec.

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