Public Statement: No Border Agents in our Hospitals and Clinics / Heath Care For All!

– PUBLIC STATEMENT: HEALTH CARE FOR ALL!

– NO BORDER AGENTS IN OUR HOSPITALS AND CLINICS

– FOR A SOLIDARITY CITY

(September 3, 2013) The Solidarity City campaign in Montreal calls on all Quebec hospitals and medical facilities to refuse access to agents of the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA). Medical facilities should exist to offer quality and accessible health care, not to collaborate in the detention and deportation of migrants. All medical facilities in Quebec should be off-limits to border agents.

There have been troubling incidents of CBSA harassment at hospitals in the Montreal-area. In late July, at least three border agents intervened at the Montreal General Hospital, trying to arrest a 57 year-old woman with heart problems. CBSA agents even entered a monitored care area in the emergency room. (info: www.solidarityacrossborders.org/en/supporters-outraged-at-cbsas-presence-at-montreal-general-hospital-to-detain-and-deport-a-57-year-old-woman-who-recently-suffered-heart-attack)

Last year, border agents similarly entered the emergency room of the Royal Victoria Hospital, despite opposition from medical personnel. There are also credible reports of more incidents.

The role of medical facilities is to provide the best care possible to patients, and the presence of CBSA agents disrupts that mission.

We make this public statement as part of an effort to build a Solidarity City in Montreal that rejects isolation and fear and aims to create networks of support and mutual aid, as neighbors, workers and members of a shared community,

We demand Health Care For All: meaning that no one should be refused health services as a result of their immigration status. We also support efforts to preserve and reinforce a universally accessible and publicly funded health care system.

More generally, everybody should have access to health care, education, social housing, food banks, unemployment benefits and any other social welfare regardless of immigration status. Labour norms and human rights should apply equally to all.

We ask that all medical facilities in Quebec, especially the Montreal-area, disallow the CBSA on their premises as an urgent matter of public policy and health.
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This callout is supported by the following organizations and individuals working in the health care sector in Quebec:

Organizations:
– Solidarité sans frontières / Solidarity Across Borders, Montréal
– Centre d’aide aux familles latino américaines (CAFLA), Montréal
– Centre des femmes d’ici et d’ailleurs, Montréal
– Clinique communautaire de Pointe-Saint-Charles, Montréal
– Collectif Justice Santé / Health Justice Collective, Montréal
– À deux mains services de santé / Head & Hands Health Services, Montréal
– Médecins du Monde Canada, Montréal
– Projet Refuge, Montréal

Individuals working in the health care sector:
– Rita Acosta, Mouvement contre le viol et l’inceste, Montréal
– Christine Arnold, RN, Montréal
– Anne-Marie Bellemare, travailleuse sociale, Montréal
– Dr David Bechard, interniste, bénévole, Médecins du Monde Canada, Montréal
– Dr Nicolas Bergeron, président, Médecins du Monde Canada, Montréal
– Nazila Bettache, MD, membre du Collectif Justice Santé, Montréal
– Isabelle Brabant, sage-femme, Maison Bleue Côte-des-Neiges, Montréal
– Zoé Brabant, professionnelle de la santé et membre du conseil d’administration de Médecins du Monde Canada, Montréal
– Kat Butler, CÉPI, MSc(A), Montréal
– Claude-Aline Carriere, infirmière, Montréal
– Marina Chirchikova, CÉPI, Hôpital Douglas, Montréal
– Dre Julie Choquet, Clinique Medicale du Sud-Ouest, Montréal
– Ana Maria Lucio Cruz. Unité familiale des naissances, Hôpital LaSalle, Montréal
– Nicolas Demers, affilié à Médecins québécois pour le régime public, Montréal
– François Dionne, résident R2, UMF Cité-de-la-santé , Laval
– Marie France Doucet, psychoéducatrice, Montréal
– Anne Fischer, infirmière à l’Hôpital Ste-Justine, Montréal
– Maryse Fournier. médecin résident, CLSC Côte-Des-Neiges, Montréal
– Anne-Marie Gallant, infirmière clinicienne, membre du Collectif Justice Santé et de Solidarité Sans Frontières, Montréal
– Sonia Gauthier, professeure agrégée, École de service social, Université de Montréal
– Camille Gérin, médecin de famille, Montréal
– Florence Godmaire-Duhaime, 2e cycle en travail social à l’Université de Montréal
– Caroline Grégoire, omnipraticienne, CSSS des Îles, Îles-de-la-madeleine
– Catherine Pugnaire Gros, RN, MSc(A), Assistant Professor, McGill University; Clinical Nurse Specialist, Douglas Mental Health University Institute, Montréal
– Roch Harvey, Directeur général, Médecins du Monde Canada, Montréal
– Helen Hudson, Inf, MSc(a), Montréal
– Farha Najah Hussain, orthophoniste, membre du Collectif Justice Santé, Montréal
– Mathieu Isabel, étudiant en médecine, Université de Montréal
– Ange-Mina Joseph, Inf. B.Sc., Montréal
– Dounia Kayal, médecin de famille, CLSC Côte-des-Neiges, Montréal
– Saideh Khadir, Médecin d’urgence, CHUM, Montréal
– Catherine Landry, thérapeute en réadaptation physique et étudiante en ostéopathie, Montréal
– Marc-André Lavallée , Externe en Médecine, Université de Montréal
– Isabelle Leblanc, Omnipraticienne, Hôpital-St-Mary’s
– Nimâ Machouf, PhD, Clinique médicale l’Actuel, Montréal
– Kimberly Munro, Résidente en médecine familiale, Montréal
– Frédérique Nadeau-Marcotte, Psychiatre, CSSS Rimouski-Neigette
– Adonia Naidu, CÉPI, Montréal
– Marie-Jo Ouimet, médecin de famille, Montréal
– Jos Porter, Health Services Coordinator, Head & Hands, Montréal
– Emma Preston, second year medical student at McGill University, Montréal
– Vanessa Purcell Lévesque, résidente en médecine familiale, Université de Sherbrooke
– My Van Quach, Family medicine R2 resident, UMF Notre-Dame, Montréal
– Nathalie Ricard, infirmière, MA, Montréal
– Sophie Richard, Médecins du Monde Canada, Montréal
– Marylie Roger, Médecins du Monde Canada, Montréal
– Andréanne Roy, résidente en médecine, Hôpital Charles-Lemoyne, Longueuil
– Jean-Pierre Roy, infirmier. membre d’infirmières et infirmiers pour la justice sociale
– Sophie Schoen, infirmière, membre du Collectif Justice Santé, Montréal
– Samir Shaheen-Hussain, pédiatre en soins aigus, membre du Collectif Justice Santé, Montréal
– Suzanne St-Pierre, bénévole, Médecins du Monde, Montréal
– Bernadette Thibaudeau, infirmière Maison Bleue, Montréal
– Florence Thomas, infirmière, Montréal
– Marilyne Tovar, CÉPI, Urgence de l’Hôpital Laurentien, Ste Agathe des Monts
– Carol Valois, médecin de famille au GMF de l’UMF Charles LeMoyne (Longueuil) et professeure à la Faculté de Médecine et des Sciences de la Santé de l’Université de Sherbrooke
– Ariane Vinet-Bonin, étudiante à la maîtrise en service social, Université de Montréal
– Scott Weinstein RN, Montréal
– Ouanessa Younsi, médecin psychiatre, Montréal
– Xi Sophie Zhang, médecin résident, Montréal

[To support this declaration, as someone working in the health care sector, please write to solidaritesansfrontieres@gmail.com with you name and affiliation(s); you can sign as an individual or as an organization. If you are not in the health care sector, but would like to support the Solidarity City campaign, consider signing the following Solidarity City declaration as an organization: www.solidarityacrossborders.org/en/solidarity-city/solidarity-city-declaration. Contact solidaritesansfrontieres@gmail.com to endorse the Solidarity City declaration.]

Médias:
– (Métro) Critiques contre l’Agence des services frontaliers: journalmetro.com/actualites/montreal/349053/critiques-contre-lagence-des-services-frontaliers/
– (Journal de Montreal) Une réfugiée arrêtée sur son lit d’hôpital: www.journaldemontreal.com/2013/07/26/une-refugiee-arretee-sur-son-lit-dhopita
– (Montreal Gazette) Woman Faces Deportation Despite Heart Condition: www.montrealgazette.com/health/Woman+faces+deportation+despite+heart+condition/8714187/story.html
– (Toronto Star) Border officials slammed for arresting woman in hospital emergency room: www.thestar.com/news/canada/2013/07/26/border_officials_slammed_for_arresting_woman_in_hospital_emergency_room.html
– (CBC) Sick Pakistani refugee in Montreal fears deportation: www.cbc.ca/news/canada/montreal/story/2013/07/25/montreal-lahore-pakistan-deportation-fear.html
– (CTV) Activists denounce CBSA for visiting woman in hospital: montreal.ctvnews.ca/activists-denounce-cbsa-for-visiting-woman-in-hospital-1.1383693#ixzz2aAwJhFs8
– (CJAD) Pakistani woman facing deportation after heart attack: www.cjad.com/CJADLocalNews/entry.aspx?BlogEntryID=10571623