Montreal couldn't handle a disaster: doctor

Dr Tarek Razek, the trauma chief at the McGill University Health Centre, says Montreal's public-health and emergency systems are unprepared for a disaster or a terrorist attack, reports the Montreal Gazette.

Tarek Razek said hospital staff would be stretched too thin to cope if Montreal suffered from an event like the 2004 bombing of the train network in Madrid or Hurricane Katrina along the Gulf of Mexico in 2005, in which thousands of people were injured.

"In Montreal, we have very, very severe deficiencies in our overall response capacity," Razek said yesterday afternoon at the conclusion of the 42nd World Congress of Surgery, held at the Palais de congrès this week.

Is Dr Razek's warning a helpful push towards improved emergency medical coverage, or is it alarmist? Tell us what you think in the comments.

Photo: MUHC

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