Medical students face delayed graduation amid Quebec doctor dispute

Medical students say as contract negotiations between the province and its doctors continue, they are facing disruptions to their training and warn patients could soon be impacted.

Medical students in Quebec say they are facing major disruptions to their training as contract negotiations between the province and its doctors continue to break down — and they warn patients could soon feel the impact too.

The Quebec Federation of Medical Specialists (FMSQ) recently instructed its members to stop teaching students, citing stalled talks with the government over Bill 106 — a proposed legislation tabled last spring that would link physicians’ pay to performance indicators as a way to get doctors to work more hours.

A few weeks later, the Federation of General Practitioners followed suit, further reducing opportunities for clinical learning across the province.

“We feel like we’re back to square one,” said Nicolas Dostie, a representative of the University of Montreal Medical Students’ Association. “Students that are supposed to be doing their clinical rotations in hospitals are at home. So they’re not learning how to treat a heart attack. They’re not learning how to reassure parents.”

Medical students have now been told that their expected graduation date, July 2026, may no longer be possible if the situation isn’t resolved soon.

Ryan Kara, executive president of the Medical Students’ Society of McGill, said students like him should be in hospitals, not at home studying alone.

“The more days we’re not at school, the (greater) the consequences,” he said. “If we can’t start residency on time, that means patients are going to have to wait even more than they’re already waiting at the moment.”

In a letter sent to Premier François Legault over the weekend and obtained by Global News, the president of the FMSQ called Bill 106 “punitive and incoherent,” blaming Health Minister Christian Dubé for “thwarting” negotiations due to his “desire to punish doctors for the problems in the health network.”