Aaron Derfel
@aaronderfel.bsky.social
I'm a health journalist at the Montreal Gazette. You can also find me on Mastodon at mas.to/@aderfel and Telegram at t.me/AaronDerfel.
My bio: https://www.concordia.ca/faculty/aaron-derfel.html
My bio: https://www.concordia.ca/faculty/aaron-derfel.html
9) There is one last point I would like to make. You will not get this kind of analysis — and certainly not this type of fact-checking — from Google's AI summaries. Thus, please support local journalism and subscribe to The Gazette. End of thread.
www.linkedin.com/posts/david-...
www.linkedin.com/posts/david-...
LANDING SOON:
FINE PRINT/Subversive News and The Montreal Gazette
This book is the story of how The Montreal Gazette has dug up the muck in Canada for nearly 250 years. In that time, the… | David ...
LANDING SOON:
FINE PRINT/Subversive News and The Montreal Gazette
This book is the story of how The Montreal Gazette has dug up the muck in Canada for nearly 250 years. In that time, the newspaper...
www.linkedin.com
November 20, 2025 at 3:00 AM
9) There is one last point I would like to make. You will not get this kind of analysis — and certainly not this type of fact-checking — from Google's AI summaries. Thus, please support local journalism and subscribe to The Gazette. End of thread.
www.linkedin.com/posts/david-...
www.linkedin.com/posts/david-...
8) Today, I spoke with CJAD radio host @eliasmakos.bsky.social about some of those targets, and what may be motivating the Legault government over Law 2. Please click below to listen to that interview. 👇
www.iheart.com/podcast/962-...
www.iheart.com/podcast/962-...
Are the performance objectives in Quebec's Bill 2 attainable? - The Elias Makos Show | iHeart
<p>Aaron Derfel, investigative health reporter at the Montreal Gazette</p>
www.iheart.com
November 20, 2025 at 3:00 AM
8) Today, I spoke with CJAD radio host @eliasmakos.bsky.social about some of those targets, and what may be motivating the Legault government over Law 2. Please click below to listen to that interview. 👇
www.iheart.com/podcast/962-...
www.iheart.com/podcast/962-...
7) On Monday, the @mtlgazette.bsky.social published a 2,200-word analysis that I wrote examining the performance targets that Law 2 imposes on doctors, suggesting that those targets effectively set up Quebec physicians to fail. Please click on that story below.👇
montrealgazette.com/news/local-n...
montrealgazette.com/news/local-n...
Analysis: How Quebec's Law 2 sets impossible medical performance goals for doctors
"You know, I cannot even increase my volume of patients by one per cent," said Dr. Rami Younan, a surgical oncologist at the Centre hospitalier de l'Université de Montréal.
montrealgazette.com
November 20, 2025 at 3:00 AM
7) On Monday, the @mtlgazette.bsky.social published a 2,200-word analysis that I wrote examining the performance targets that Law 2 imposes on doctors, suggesting that those targets effectively set up Quebec physicians to fail. Please click on that story below.👇
montrealgazette.com/news/local-n...
montrealgazette.com/news/local-n...
6) Yet my role as a journalist is not to serve any interest group or politician. It's to follow the facts and to report the facts in the greater public interest. My latest fact-check also shows Quebec's emergency rooms are faring much worse than those in Ontario.
montrealgazette.com/news/quebec/...
montrealgazette.com/news/quebec/...
Fact-checking Premier François Legault on doctors' pay law
The premier is correct in both of his latest claims: Quebec has more doctors per capita than in Ontario, and access to general practitioners is worse here.
montrealgazette.com
November 20, 2025 at 3:00 AM
6) Yet my role as a journalist is not to serve any interest group or politician. It's to follow the facts and to report the facts in the greater public interest. My latest fact-check also shows Quebec's emergency rooms are faring much worse than those in Ontario.
montrealgazette.com/news/quebec/...
montrealgazette.com/news/quebec/...
5) Which brings me to my latest fact-check, which reveals Premier Legault is correct in his latest assertions: Quebec has more physicians per capita than Ontario, yet access to family doctors is worse here. This may please the Premier's office. But it may anger some doctors here.
November 20, 2025 at 3:00 AM
5) Which brings me to my latest fact-check, which reveals Premier Legault is correct in his latest assertions: Quebec has more physicians per capita than Ontario, yet access to family doctors is worse here. This may please the Premier's office. But it may anger some doctors here.
4) When Dubé and two other ministers wrote a letter in 2024 defending their short-lived decision to impose a highly divisive English eligibility certificate on Quebec anglophones to receive health care in their mother tongue, I fact-checked their claims, too.
montrealgazette.com/news/local-n...
montrealgazette.com/news/local-n...
Fact-checking the ministers' letter on accessing health care in English
An open letter from the Quebec government claims that absolutely no linguistic conditions in health care are imposed before providing service in English to anyone who requests it. We examined the clai...
montrealgazette.com
November 20, 2025 at 3:00 AM
4) When Dubé and two other ministers wrote a letter in 2024 defending their short-lived decision to impose a highly divisive English eligibility certificate on Quebec anglophones to receive health care in their mother tongue, I fact-checked their claims, too.
montrealgazette.com/news/local-n...
montrealgazette.com/news/local-n...
3) Even after the World Health Organization declared COVID-19 no longer an international emergency, I continued to fact-check both Legault and Health Minister Christian Dubé. That is part of my job as a journalist. Please below one such story last year.
montrealgazette.com/news/local-n...
montrealgazette.com/news/local-n...
Analysis: What François Legault's health-care video doesn't tell you
Patient-rights advocate decries "triumphalist tone" of CAQ message on health-care achievements since 2018
montrealgazette.com
November 20, 2025 at 3:00 AM
3) Even after the World Health Organization declared COVID-19 no longer an international emergency, I continued to fact-check both Legault and Health Minister Christian Dubé. That is part of my job as a journalist. Please below one such story last year.
montrealgazette.com/news/local-n...
montrealgazette.com/news/local-n...
2) During the COVID-19 pandemic — when Legault enjoyed immense popularity — I wrote a series of nightly Twitter threads about the state of contagion in the province. Some of my threads fact-checked the Premier about his claims, and he didn't like them.
www.cbc.ca/radio/asitha...
www.cbc.ca/radio/asitha...
Montreal health reporter 'surprised' premier criticized his COVID-19 reporting | CBC Radio
A Montreal health reporter is standing by his journalism after Quebec's premier singled him out for stirring up fear over COVID-19.
www.cbc.ca
November 20, 2025 at 3:00 AM
2) During the COVID-19 pandemic — when Legault enjoyed immense popularity — I wrote a series of nightly Twitter threads about the state of contagion in the province. Some of my threads fact-checked the Premier about his claims, and he didn't like them.
www.cbc.ca/radio/asitha...
www.cbc.ca/radio/asitha...
7) The reason for this is simple: This reshuffling of the deck chairs on Quebec's Titanic medical system is being carried out with the same number of medical staff. The staff are just moving from the public to the private sector, creating more shortages in the public system. End of thread.
October 21, 2025 at 2:16 AM
7) The reason for this is simple: This reshuffling of the deck chairs on Quebec's Titanic medical system is being carried out with the same number of medical staff. The staff are just moving from the public to the private sector, creating more shortages in the public system. End of thread.
6) Health Minister Christian Dubé's latest proposal is to shift backlogged surgeries like knee and hip replacements from the public system to the private sector at greater cost to taxpayers. But this transfer indirectly weakens the public system in the long run.
October 21, 2025 at 2:16 AM
6) Health Minister Christian Dubé's latest proposal is to shift backlogged surgeries like knee and hip replacements from the public system to the private sector at greater cost to taxpayers. But this transfer indirectly weakens the public system in the long run.
5) A growing number of orthopedic surgeons — fed up with the lack of resources in the public system — have opted out of medicare and are operating in the private-for-profit sector. This trend has been gaining momentum under Santé Québec.
montrealgazette.com/news/reveale...
montrealgazette.com/news/reveale...
Revealed: Exodus of Quebec doctors to private sector accelerates despite new law
Revealed- Exodus of Quebec doctors to private sector accelerates despite new law
montrealgazette.com
October 21, 2025 at 2:16 AM
5) A growing number of orthopedic surgeons — fed up with the lack of resources in the public system — have opted out of medicare and are operating in the private-for-profit sector. This trend has been gaining momentum under Santé Québec.
montrealgazette.com/news/reveale...
montrealgazette.com/news/reveale...
4) At present, 150 operating rooms in the public network are closed each weekday in Quebec for lack of staff. This has contributed to a ballooning of wait times for surgery. As of Sept. 20, 6,200 Quebecers were on wait lists of at least a year for their operation.
October 21, 2025 at 2:16 AM
4) At present, 150 operating rooms in the public network are closed each weekday in Quebec for lack of staff. This has contributed to a ballooning of wait times for surgery. As of Sept. 20, 6,200 Quebecers were on wait lists of at least a year for their operation.
3) Astute political analyst Josée Legault has sometimes written about this phenomenon. She uses a great French word to describe it: "vampiriser." Below is one of her columns on the subject.
www.journaldemontreal.com/2023/02/17/l...
www.journaldemontreal.com/2023/02/17/l...
La montée du privé-privé en santé doit être freinée
En plus d’affamer à répétition la première ligne de la médecine familiale, nos gouvernements ont fermé les yeux sur la montée du privé-privé.
www.journaldemontreal.com
October 21, 2025 at 2:16 AM
3) Astute political analyst Josée Legault has sometimes written about this phenomenon. She uses a great French word to describe it: "vampiriser." Below is one of her columns on the subject.
www.journaldemontreal.com/2023/02/17/l...
www.journaldemontreal.com/2023/02/17/l...
2) Click below to read my original story on the subject in the @mtlgazette.bsky.social. The upshot is that more and more the Coalition Avenir Québec government is embracing private-sector options in health care — often to the detriment of the public system.
montrealgazette.com/news/local-n...
montrealgazette.com/news/local-n...
Quebec proposes private surgeries for patients waiting at least a year in the public system
"The worst part is the CAQ admits outright that surgeries will cost more in the private sector. It's nonsense," union leader Réjean Leclerc says.
montrealgazette.com
October 21, 2025 at 2:16 AM
2) Click below to read my original story on the subject in the @mtlgazette.bsky.social. The upshot is that more and more the Coalition Avenir Québec government is embracing private-sector options in health care — often to the detriment of the public system.
montrealgazette.com/news/local-n...
montrealgazette.com/news/local-n...
11) But in Canada, physicians like @dralandrummond.bsky.social have been sounding the alarm for years, likening Canadian ERs to dying canaries in a coal mine shaft. Yet nothing has been done.
Nothing.
End of thread.
Nothing.
End of thread.
October 5, 2025 at 7:00 PM
11) But in Canada, physicians like @dralandrummond.bsky.social have been sounding the alarm for years, likening Canadian ERs to dying canaries in a coal mine shaft. Yet nothing has been done.
Nothing.
End of thread.
Nothing.
End of thread.
10) The New York Tiimes article is calling attention to an ER crisis unfolding in the United States. In September, the BBC reported on more than "800 deaths linked to long A&E waits" in Scotland. Thus, this problem is no longer unique to Canada.
www.bbc.com/news/article...
www.bbc.com/news/article...
More than 800 deaths in Scotland linked to long A&E waits
The Royal College of Emergency Medicine found that 76,510 people waited more than 12 hours in emergency departments last year.
www.bbc.com
October 5, 2025 at 7:00 PM
10) The New York Tiimes article is calling attention to an ER crisis unfolding in the United States. In September, the BBC reported on more than "800 deaths linked to long A&E waits" in Scotland. Thus, this problem is no longer unique to Canada.
www.bbc.com/news/article...
www.bbc.com/news/article...
9) The MEI study points out the situation has been growing worse in ERs since 2019. The chart below shows nearly 27% of Quebec ER patients languishing on stretchers for at least 24 hours. The goal should be zero for that length of time. Also note no improvement since 2020.
October 5, 2025 at 7:00 PM
9) The MEI study points out the situation has been growing worse in ERs since 2019. The chart below shows nearly 27% of Quebec ER patients languishing on stretchers for at least 24 hours. The goal should be zero for that length of time. Also note no improvement since 2020.
8) In September, the Montreal Economic Institute published a study that concluded "too many Canadians are leaving emergency rooms untreated." Quebec reported the highest number for 2024-2025 of any province: a staggering 428,676.
October 5, 2025 at 7:00 PM
8) In September, the Montreal Economic Institute published a study that concluded "too many Canadians are leaving emergency rooms untreated." Quebec reported the highest number for 2024-2025 of any province: a staggering 428,676.
7) In February, a 69-year-old Laval man with a history of arrhythmia died after waiting for 11 hours in the Cité de la santé hospital ER without ever seeing a doctor, his family says.
montreal.citynews.ca/2025/02/17/g...
montreal.citynews.ca/2025/02/17/g...
Grandfather's sudden death in Laval ER after not seeing doctor for 11 hours under investigation
Umberto Mastantuono had already been at the Cité-de-la-Santé emergency room for hours and did not want to be moved. “He trusted the fact that I’m in a hospital,” said his wife Diamante Mastantuono. “‘...
montreal.citynews.ca
October 5, 2025 at 7:00 PM
7) In February, a 69-year-old Laval man with a history of arrhythmia died after waiting for 11 hours in the Cité de la santé hospital ER without ever seeing a doctor, his family says.
montreal.citynews.ca/2025/02/17/g...
montreal.citynews.ca/2025/02/17/g...
6) Flash-forward to 2025. What is the situation like today in Canadian ERs? In August, an Ontario family called on the government to set maximum pediatric ER wait times after their 16-year-old son died following an eight-hour wait for a doctor last year.
www.cbc.ca/news/canada/...
www.cbc.ca/news/canada/...
Ontario couple whose teenage son died after 8-hour wait in ER calls for law reform | CBC News
An Ontario family is calling on the provincial government to introduce legislation that would set maximum emergency room wait times for children after their teenage son died following an eight-hour wa...
www.cbc.ca
October 5, 2025 at 7:00 PM
6) Flash-forward to 2025. What is the situation like today in Canadian ERs? In August, an Ontario family called on the government to set maximum pediatric ER wait times after their 16-year-old son died following an eight-hour wait for a doctor last year.
www.cbc.ca/news/canada/...
www.cbc.ca/news/canada/...
5) In February 2023, I wrote a four-part series about six deaths in the ER of Lakeshore General Hospital in the Montreal suburb of Pointe-Claire. Those deaths could have been prevented.
montrealgazette.com/news/local-n...
montrealgazette.com/news/local-n...
Staff haunted by suicide at the Lakeshore Hospital ER
A Montreal Gazette investigation exposes one of six deaths at the West Island hospital that whistleblowers say could have been prevented.
montrealgazette.com
October 5, 2025 at 7:00 PM
5) In February 2023, I wrote a four-part series about six deaths in the ER of Lakeshore General Hospital in the Montreal suburb of Pointe-Claire. Those deaths could have been prevented.
montrealgazette.com/news/local-n...
montrealgazette.com/news/local-n...
4) As the Times noted, the American College of Emergency Physicians warned that “boarding” — in which patients wait in the ER for days and sometimes weeks for hospital admission — is “a public health emergency.” The same thing is happening in Canada.
montrealgazette.com/news/local-n...
montrealgazette.com/news/local-n...
Analysis: The horrible psychological toll exacted by long ER waits
"Boarding duration (in an ER) is a direct risk factor for developing delirium or severe agitation," a research study found.
montrealgazette.com
October 5, 2025 at 7:00 PM
4) As the Times noted, the American College of Emergency Physicians warned that “boarding” — in which patients wait in the ER for days and sometimes weeks for hospital admission — is “a public health emergency.” The same thing is happening in Canada.
montrealgazette.com/news/local-n...
montrealgazette.com/news/local-n...
3) To quote from the New York Times article: "ER staff are under mounting pressure to discharge patients as fast as they can: Cynics among them call their job 'moving the meat.' Hospitals are nearing capacity because of aging facilities and economic pressures."
October 5, 2025 at 7:00 PM
3) To quote from the New York Times article: "ER staff are under mounting pressure to discharge patients as fast as they can: Cynics among them call their job 'moving the meat.' Hospitals are nearing capacity because of aging facilities and economic pressures."