Quebec doctor haunted by family tragedy condemns new health care bill
A Quebec family doctor, whose life was thrust into the spotlight by a widely-publicized tragedy, is speaking out — frustrated by what she sees as the government's repeated insinuations that physicians like her aren't pulling their weight.
Dr. Isabelle Gaston is the former wife of Guy Turcotte, the disgraced cardiologist sentenced to life in prison for the 2009 murders of their two children.
While the Quebec government continues to push family doctors to take on more patients, Gaston says she simply can't — not with the deep psychological scars she still carries.
Roughly a decade ago, Gaston transitioned from working in emergency medicine to becoming a family physician. The fast-paced, high-stress environment of the ER had become too emotionally triggering in the aftermath of her personal tragedy.
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'When a child screamed, it would take me back to the trauma — to the image of my own children,' she said, speaking about the loss of her five-year-old, Olivier, and three-year-old Anne-Sophie.
Speaking to Global News on Tuesday, she said the emotional toll of that experience continues to shape both her life and her ability to practice medicine.
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Quebec government wants changes to how doctors are paid
Gaston says she has a roster of around 400 patients — fewer than most family doctors in Quebec — and works a reduced schedule of four days a week.
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Given the lasting psychological trauma she lives with, Gaston says it's all she can manage.
'Because I have a lower caseload, there's some bonus salary that I don't get, and I accept that.'
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Quebec tabled Bill 106 earlier this month with the goal of pushing doctors to take on more patients so that more people can get access to care. Premier Francois Legault has repeated that about a third of family doctors in the province aren't taking on enough patients.
Gaston says she takes issue with that. 'I think that's a toxic way of thinking. Treating doctors as lazy.'
The new bill proposes to adjust doctor compensation based on 'collective performance.'
'So my colleagues who work on the same team as me would be penalized because of my reduced workload.'
Gaston added that trauma is far from the only reason a physician might want a reduced schedule, and is calling on the government to be flexible.
She said a sick parent or child, among other things, are valid reasons for someone to work less.
Quebec's Health Minister Christian Dubé has said he understands the vast majority of physicians work extremely hard, but to get more people in the province access to a family doctor, things will 'need to be done differently.'
'I think there are lot of ways of making the system more efficient without bashing the wrong people,' Gaston said.
She told Global News she has thought about working in the private sector, where she could work less and make more money, but says it's important to her to work in the public system.
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'But I need to feel that my needs and those of my colleagues are being respected.'
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