Quebec ERs report major overcrowding, some at more than 200% capacity – Montreal [Video]

Quebec is experiencing serious overcrowding in its emergency rooms after the holidays, with some major hospitals in Montreal operating at more than 200 per cent capacity on Friday.

One emergency room physician in Montreal said the overcrowding is trending toward pre-pandemic levels, a situation he described as entirely predictable and preventable.

Dr. Mitch Shulman said pressure on hospitals always gets worse post-Christmas, but added that the provincial government hasn’t done enough to inform people about the alternatives to ERs where they can seek care.

“Every year as we approach the holidays, people will do anything they can to stay at home for Christmas, which is understandable, it’s a family holiday,” Shulman, an attending physician at the Royal Victoria and Montreal General hospitals, said in an interview.

“And then what happens is starting on Boxing Day, people just start flooding the emergency room,” coinciding with a period where few clinics and doctor’s offices are open.

Around midday Friday, Montreal General …