Ray of hope at l`Actuel sur rue

Conseil central du Montréal métropolitain–CSN
January 2013, vol. 27, no. 1
Dr Réjean Thomas
Ray of hope
at l’Actuel
sur rue
L’Actuel sur rue
Close to the People
Sticking to our Resolutions
Par Dominique Daigneault
secrétaire générale du CCMM–CSN
T
he tradition at New Year’s is to resolve to do
better in different areas of our lives. Sticking to
our resolutions can be difficult, but at least it’s a
moment when we can take the time for an examination
of conscience. We hope our political leaders will do the
same. Here is a sampling of the resolutions we hope they
would make:
That municipal leaders be more transparent in
administering our cities; put an end to corruption and
collusion once and for all; and, most important, enable
the public to fully participate in municipal democratic
processes.
That the Marois government stop giving in to the
protestations of every right-wing nut when it comes time
to enact their electoral promises to protect the common
good—the elimination of the health tax, for one.
That the Harper government cease its endless
anti-democratic manoeuvres to impose its harsh
antisocial policies and gag scientists and advocacy
groups, including labour organizations. That it renounce
its unwavering alliance with the oil industry and act
responsibly to protect the environment. That it stop
shaming us internationally by sabotaging international
agreements to reduce greenhouse gases and climate
change and opposing any moves to recognize the rights
of the Palestinians.
But, governments aside, we should probably be
making a few resolutions of our own to pressure them
into action!
For example, we’d like to see the labour movement
take a determined and combative stand on many
different fronts to demand and win substantial
improvements to people’s living and working
conditions—locally, regionally and nationally.
2 • Unité January 2013
We hope that everyone will be more conscious
of their power and take every opportunity to use it,
whether in the form of consultations, forums, or
the streets!
What about you? What resolutions are most
important to you? One thing is certain: we have to make
sure our resolutions are not forgotten after New Year’s
Day. We’ve got to be ready for action all year long!
On behalf of the Conseil central du Montréal
métropolitain-CSN, I wish you all great fighting form and
a happy New Year!
Happy holidays ever yone
Take a breather
during the
holidays
Shortly after World Aids Day, l’Unité met with
a man known for his big ideas and challenges:
Dr. Réjean Thomas. For nearly 30 years he has
devoted himself to helping people living with
HIV, and his quest for innovative solutions has
been unflagging. Located in the heart of the Gay
Village on Sainte-Catherine Street in Montréal,
l’Actuel sur rue is the latest offshoot of the
Clinique médicale L’Actuel.
L
’Actuel sur rue is not
­publicly funded; the parent
health clinic assures its operation. People can come to the
new clinic for free screening
tests for HIV, hepatitis C and
syphilis, and they will have
their results within 10 minutes.
The clinic’s priority clientele is
groups at risk such as addicts
and women and men in the sex
industry. L’Actuel sur rue also
provides services for gay men
who are at risk because of certain gay sexual practices (the
risk of transmitting the virus is
18 times higher with anal sex
than vaginal sex).
More accessible
“By simplifying the screening
process we’re able to reach
people who would otherwise
refuse to get tested,” affirms
Dr. Thomas. The Acadian born
physician estimates it would
take from 5 to 10 years to
eradicate HIV if all infected persons were treated, but for that,
people must agree to be tested.
“Triple therapy treatment
greatly reduces the chances
of transmission,” he explains.
“The most infectious stage
of the illness is at the beginning and the virus is much
more treatable when it is diagnosed early,” says Dr. Thomas.
Thomas strongly objects to the
Charest government’s cancellation last summer of the public
campaign around World Aids
Day. “After eliminating sex
education in schools in 2003,
they abolished the only remaining annual public prevention
campaign.” Yet, as the doctor
points out, each new case costs
the government $18,000, and
between 300 and 450 new
cases of infection are diagnosed
every year.
L’Actuel sur rue clearly
meets a need because since
the opening in mid-July
Dr. Réjean Thomas, president and founder of Clinique médicale l’Actuel
and Clinique A, being interviewed by l’Unité
some 700 people have come
through its doors. The social/­
community approach being
developed by the team is a
logical outgrowth of the services already provided at the
Clinique médicale l’Actuel,
which, since its inception in
1984, has focused on taking
medicine out of the hospitals
and to the people. “Even though
we now have more control over
HIV, it is still a heavily stigmatized illness that isolates those
who are afflicted. We see lots of
people who come to the clinic
looking for information,” says
Dr. Thomas.
There are 10 members of the
Actuel sur rue team, including
community workers, nurses
and a medical director. When
a screening test is positive, the
person immediately receives
attention. They are promptly
referred to the Clinique médicale l’Actuel or the Clinique A,
where they receive all the
required care.
The first of its kind in
Canada, l’Actuel sur rue is
a walk-in clinic. To ensure
flexibility and adapt to a
diverse clientele, it is open
every day except Wednesday.
On Thursdays and Fridays it
closes at 8 p.m.
Réjean Thomas emphasizes
the importance of continued
information and education
efforts. In the last five years we
have witnessed an explosion
of blood-borne and sexually
transmitted infection, mainly
among youth. In fact, 34% of
the new cases at l’Actuel were
diagnosed in people under 30.
“One quarter of Quebeckers
infected with HIV don’t know
it and these individuals are
responsible for half of the new
cases of infection every year. My
youngest patient is 20 and my
oldest is 88. It’s a fight that is
far from over,” he concludes.
www.cliniquelactuel.com
Unité January 2013 • 3
Privatization of procurement suspended at CHUM and MUHC
Is it the worm’s turn to be eaten?
A
pparently the tireless efforts to
denounce the incursion of the private
sector into public services undertaken by
CSN unions at the Centre hospitalier de
l’Université de Montréal (CHUM) and the
McGill University Health Centre (MUHC)
have borne fruit. According to La Presse,
the ministry of health and social services
(MSSS) is backing away from the privatization of medical equipment procurement
due to the “fear of a major conflict of interest involving the American multinational
[Cardinal Health] that is expected to win the
contract” (La Presse, November 20, 2012,
A12). An MSSS representative affirmed that
if this multinational were to obtain the contract, it would find itself in the position
of being both buyer and seller, because
Cardinal Health is a leading medical equipment manufacturer. The provincial government has finally taken note of the concerns
the CHUM and MUHC unions have been
voicing for many months.
The unions conducted ­
numerous
actions to highlight the danger of
­public-private (PPP) contracts in the public
sector, including an appraisal from the
MCE Conseils management consulting
firm, presentations to the boards of both
hospitals, meetings with their senior management, and demonstrations to protest
PPP contracts. A union campaign with the
slogan Le ver est dans la pomme [The Worm
is in the Apple] has been underway since
early November to bring additional pressure to bear on the management of these
two mega-hospitals so they will abandon
the proposed privatization of kitchen,
maintenance, storage services and procurement of medical equipment and other
items. As you can imagine, procurement is
a highly strategic and critical function in
a health institution and the MSSS’ recent
decision to suspend the privatization of
procurement is good news.
Still, we need more from government and
hospital management: all plans to privatize
certain services must be put aside because
privatization is far from being a viable solution. When they are privatized, these services are usually more expensive and of lesser
quality. The lack of transparency that could
accompany such private ­contracts and the
loss of expertise in the public sector are
additional concerns.
The Québec government’s backstepping is the first gain; the Le ver est dans la
pomme campaign continues in the hopes
that management at the two hospitals will
finally see reason and ensure that all their
services remain in the public sector. It’s a
question of the sound administration of our
collective resources.
Mireille Bénard
Conseillère syndicale
35th Congress of the Conseil central
du Montréal métropolitain–CSN
Audacity and
Innovation !
T
he Central Council is holding its triennial
congress on June 10–14, 2013. Everyone
on the Central Council team is already at work
and for the 35th edition of our congress we're
guaranteeing something out of the ordinary.
We want to do something we've never done, try
a new format to engage members to join with
the CSN in thinking about the need to renew
labour practices and unionism in general. We at
the Central Council believe the founding values
of the CSN—union autonomy, solidarity, and
democracy—are more relevant than ever. These
values should be central to our deliberations
before, during, and after the Congress. In the
next issues of l'Unité, we'll update you on the
preparations for the Congress. Be sure to mark
the dates on your calendars!
Dominique Daigneault
Secrétaire générale du CCMM-CSN
On November 5, 2012, people demonstrated in front of the CHUM’s research centre
to denounce PPPs in the health sector
4 • Unité January 2013