Fifty-seven patients from the Îles-de-la-Madeleine suffering from chronic pain will have to take their troubles patiently for two months, due to the cancellation of an Air Canada flight carrying a medical specialist.

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The crisis that is shaking the country's airports is not only causing ruined holidays. Talk to Dr. David Landry, who has been traveling to the Islands periodically for five years to provide medical imaging services and cortisone and anesthetic infiltrations.

As he does about every two months, the doctor-radiologist went to Montreal-Trudeau airport last Sunday, July 3, to take a flight to the archipelago. But at the last moment, bad surprise: Air Canada cancels its flight, citing “factors related to the pandemic beyond our control”.

The doctor, who works at Notre-Dame Hospital in Montreal, was finally able to take another flight on Tuesday, but the 48 hours lost could not be made up for.

“It means that Monday and Tuesday morning, all appointments had to be canceled. In all and everywhere, it was 58 appointments canceled. So, 58 patients will live with their pain for another two months,” he laments.

Of these 58 appointments, only one could be resumed later in the week, since the rest of the doctor's schedule in the Islands was already busy with other patients.

Not a first

The doctor laments that this is far from the first time that air travel has caused headaches for him and his colleagues. He cites three other unforeseen events experienced in recent months, those with the Pascan company: an interrupted flight, a reservation problem and confused instructions at the airport.

“All the specialist colleagues who come here have similar stories. You really have to have strong backs to come here, ”he says.

“What is very worrying to me is that all these problems mean that there are patients who do not have their care. »

The doctor wants the government to get involved in the file, to bring more reliability to the air service. He suggests evaluating the possibility of assigning a weekly flight to staff providing essential services.

Uncertain future

Because if nothing changes, the stress associated with travel and the lack of efficiency, for him and for the patients, could get the better of his involvement.

"I have already promised that I will continue for next year, but for sure if it doesn't improve or if it gets worse, for 2024, I really can't make any more promises," said he regretfully.

Asked to respond, Air Canada blames "lack of resources experienced by third-party service providers [which] impacted airport and aviation industry operations" for Sunday's flight cancellation .

The carrier always ensures that it does everything possible to find an alternative solution for its customers, saying “fully understands the disappointment and inconvenience” they experience.

The CISSS des Îles-de-la-Madeleine fears that medical specialists will abandon the region if the reliability of air transport does not stabilize.

Due to its isolation, the archipelago relies on a hundred doctors from outside who come to provide specialized care from time to time.

"There are doctors who are showing the fact that at some point they may resign, so that's definitely a concern for me," says CEO Sophie Doucet.

She says she has frequent contact with Pascan, which, unlike Air Canada, provides year-round air travel. The CISSS also has a contract with it for the transportation of users.

According to figures presented to him, the reliability index is on the rise.

“There are still possible solutions that have been explored by Pascan and are being applied, so I dare to believe that the situation has improved in recent weeks. »

Despite everything, she is following the case closely. “There is enormous fragility and the whole aviation world is affected. »

Pascan did not respond to our request for comment.

Not surprised

According to Ms. Doucet, the pandemic, the lack of manpower, changes to federal regulations, mechanical breakdowns and difficult weather conditions last winter are factors that have contributed to the situation.

The deputy of the Îles-de-la-Madeleine, Joël Arseneau, does not say he is surprised by the misadventure experienced by Dr. David Landry. “It is symptomatic of a situation that has persisted since at least the start of the pandemic. »

Last May, Le Journal reported the testimony of another specialist, an ophthalmologist, who was considering stopping her practice in the region, due to irritants when traveling.

According to Mr. Arseneau, the Legault government has missed its target with its $500 plane ticket program in the regions.

“The airlines are understaffed, there are a shortage of pilots, there are planes that are not always very reliable, there is the weather, so we increase the layers of problems, and we superimposed one by saying: we will increase traffic on flights that were already difficult," he said.