Who are we?
Mission
The FMSQ's mission is to defend and support the medical specialists of its affiliated associations who work in the public healthcare system, while promoting quality care and services for the Quebec population.
Made up of 35 affiliated medical associations, the FMSQ represents each of these associations as a united group. Each medical specialist who is a member of the FMSQ is respectively a member of one of these medical associations.
FMSQ Organizational Chart - 2022
The FMSQ is composed of two types of bodies: consultative bodies and decision-making bodies.
Consultative bodies
The Presidents' Commission is the main consultative body of the FMSQ. It brings together the presidents of the various medical associations in order to inform the representatives of the boards of directors of the issues at stake in their association.
Various committees also work on the issues and priorities of the FMSQ. Some of them are permanent while others are created for occasional mandates.
Decision-making bodies
The Assembly of Delegates is the main decision-making body of the FMSQ. It is through it that all major decisions, political and general orientations, as well as budgets are voted on. It is composed of representatives from each of the medical associations.
The Board of Directors is made up of nine people responsible for defining the general orientations of the FMSQ and determining negotiation strategies.
Board of Directors
The FMSQ is headed by a president elected by the delegates of the 35 medical associations. Dr. Vincent Oliva, radiologist, is the current president of the Federation.
Elected by the Assembly of Delegates, the nine members of the Board of Directors are responsible for defining general orientations and determining negotiation strategies.
The positions on the Board of Directors are :
- President
- Vice President
- Secretary
- Treasurer
- Five advisors, one is from and represents the intermediate regions and one is from and represents the remote regions.
Composition of the Board of Directors for the 2021-2022 period
Debouts de gauche à droite : Dr Serge Legault, vice-président, Dr Gilles O’Hara, conseiller, Dr Alain Bestavros, conseiller, Dre Karine J. Igartua, secrétaire et conseillère, Dr Yohann St-Pierre, conseiller représentant les régions éloignées. Assis de gauche à droite : Dre Corinne Leclerc, conseillère représentant les régions intermédiaires, Dr Vincent Oliva, président, Dr Janik Sarrazin, conseiller, Dre Chantal Bolduc, trésorière et conseillère.
Dr. Vincent Oliva is the eighth medical specialist to become President of the FMSQ, and it is his first term on the Board of Directors. Intervention radiologist in a university for 30 years, until his election, he held the positions of head of the radiology department of the CHUM and president of the Radiologists Association of Québec (2016-2021).
As the president of the FMSQ, Dr. Oliva takes part in the work of several committees related to negotiation, budget, conditions of practice, remuneration, distribution, medical staff, etc. He also chairs the boards of directors of the two subsidiaries of the Federation (Sogemec Assurances and Professionals' Financial) and of the FMSQ Foundation.
Dr. Serge Legault is serving his first term on the FMSQ Board of Directors as Vice President. In active practice as a surgeon for 30 years, Dr. Legault is also a clinical lecturer at the Faculty of Medicine of the Université de Montréal and an examiner for the Royal College of General Surgeons.
During his career, Dr. Legault has held various management positions. In particular, he was a member of the Board of Directors of the Association québécoise de chirurgie (2004-2018) and then President (2018-2021). Dr. Legault has also served as president of the Sept-Îles Hospital CMDP, member of the executive of the Pierre-Boucher Hospital CMDP, president of the central committee for the evaluation of the medical act and of the risk management committee at the Cité-de-la-santé de Laval, head of the general surgery department and member of the operating room coordination committee.
Dr. Karine Josée Igartua is in her first term on the FMSQ Board of Directors. She has been a psychiatrist in the psychiatric emergency department of the MUHC for the past twenty years and also works in three remote regions. Involved in the Federation, she has served as a delegate for 14 years, in addition to being president of the Association des médecins psychiatres du Québec for 8 years (2013-2021). As president of her association, Dr. Igartua has taken a position on various social issues (cannabis, medical aid in dying, youth mental health) and launched the AlphasConnect movement.
Dr. Chantal Bolduc is in her third term on the FMSQ Board of Directors. She graduated in dermatology from the University of Montreal (1999) and then did a subspecialty at the University of British Columbia. She is currently an assistant professor at the Centre hospitalier de l'Université de Montréal (CHUM).
Dr. Bolduc was President of the Quebec Association of Dermatology Specialists (2006-2012) and a member of the Board of Directors of the Canadian Dermatology Association (2001-2003). Since 2013, she has been a member of the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada's Board of Examiners, of which she has been President since 2019.
Dr. Alain Bestavros is serving his second term on the FMSQ Board of Directors as an advisor. A graduate in medicine and internal medicine from McGill University, he completed his residency in hematology at the Université de Montréal (2009) and his residency in medical oncology at the B.C. Cancer Agency in Vancouver (2011).
In addition to practicing as a hemato-oncologist at Cité-de-la-Santé Hospital, Dr. Bestavros is a clinical assistant professor in the Department of Medicine at the University of Montreal and a tutor for the preclinical course in hematology sciences. He also supervises externs and residents during their hematology and medical oncology rotations at the CHUM and the Cité-de-la-Santé Hospital.
A graduate of the Montreal University (1983), Dr. O'Hara continued his training in internal medicine (1987) and cardiology (1988) at the Université de Sherbrooke. He then completed a 2-year subspecialty in cardiac electrophysiology in Maastricht, the Netherlands. He is a Clinical Associate Professor at Laval University. This is Dr. O'Hara's third term as an advisor on the FMSQ Board of Directors.
A former president of the Association of Cardiologists of Quebec (2011-2017), he also served as chair of his association's Continuing Professional Development (CPD) Committee (2006-2011). Dr. O'Hara was actively involved in the implementation of group purchasing in cardiology.
Dr. Janick Sarazin received his medical degree from the University of Sherbrooke in 1998 and completed his residency in otolaryngology at the University of Montreal in 2003. He is currently serving his first term on the FMSQ Board of Directors as an advisor.
Involved in his association and federal affairs for many years, Dr. Sarrazin was a member of the Board of Directors of the Association des oto-rhino-laryngologistes du Québec from 2007 to 2018, during which time he served as Vice-President (2010-2014) and President (2014-2018). He has also carried out various mandates for the FMSQ by taking part in committees such as those on the drafting of the Guide québécois des bonnes pratiques en salle d'opération and on the Gestion des listes d'attente en salle d'opération, conducted jointly by the FMSQ and the MSSS.
Dr. Corinne Leclercq is in her second term as an advisor and representative of the intermediate regions on the FMSQ Board of Directors. A graduate of the University of Sherbrooke in general medicine (1994) and obstetrics gynecology (1999), she is in active practice in the Centre-du-Québec region, where she has held a position as assistant to the chief of surgery since the beginning of 2019. Affiliated with the University Centre of Sherbrooke, she is also a clinical teaching professor for externs, family medicine residents and obstetrics gynecology residents.
Dr. Leclercq is very involved with the Association des obstétriciens gynécologues du Québec (AOGQ), where she has served as a director (2001-2015), member of the executive committee (2003-2012) and president (2008-2010). She was also a member of the Board of Directors of the Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists of Canada from 2007 to 2009.
Dr. Yohann St-Pierre graduated in medicine (2007) and pediatrics (2011) from Laval University. He is now serving his second term as an advisor and representative of the remote regions on the Federation's Board. Since 2012, he has been practicing at the Hôpital régional de Rimouski, in addition to being a clinical rofessor in the Department of Pediatrics at Laval University.
During the last years, Dr. St-Pierre has served as head of the Department of Pediatrics (2014-2016), as first advisor on its Council of Physicians, Dentists and Pharmacists (2014-2015) and as director of the integrated longitudinal clerkship of the Faculty of Medicine of Université Laval at the CISSS du Bas-Saint-Laurent (2017-2019). He also contributed to the implementation of the insulin pump program for diabetic children in Eastern Quebec and continues to be involved in the evaluation of the quality of the procedure.
Our history
In 1930, the first conflict broke out between doctors and hospitals. This was the beginning of the movement to unionize doctors.
In the early 1960s, the government introduced a universal health insurance plan. It wanted to impose a salary system on doctors, who then decided to create a professional union.
Thus, the FMSQ was created in 1965. Since its founding, it has represented the interests of physicians working in one of the recognized medical specialties in Québec.
Eight presidents have succeeded each other at the FMSQ from 1965 to 2021. Dr. Vincent Oliva, radiologist, is the current president of the Federation. Discover the background of each of the Federation's presidents:
Dr. Raymond Robillard 1965-1978
Dr. Raymond Robillard (1927-2007) graduated in neurology in 1958 and was the founder of the Fédération des médecins spécialistes du Québec. While pursuing his clinical duties at Maisonneuve-Rosemont Hospital, this visionary brought together the various existing associations of medical specialists to create a union to defend their professional and financial interests.
Medical specialists want to discuss their dissatisfaction in regards to the role played by the Collège des médecins du Québec. It will take four years of discussions to achieve the creation of the FMSQ.
Dr. Paul Desjardins 1978-1991
Born in Halifax, Dr. Paul Desjardins (1935-2018) received his medical degree from the University of Montreal in 1961 and his certification in Obstetrics and Gynecology in 1966. Soon, as part of his medical practice, he became interested in maternal and fetal mortality and founded the Intensive Care Unit for high-risk pregnancies at the Royal Victoria Hospital.
Very involved in the Association of Obstetricians and Gynecologists of Quebec as well as the Society of Obstetricians and Gynecologists of Canada, he held the position of Treasurer and Director of Professional and Economic Affairs at the FMSQ before becoming its President.
Dr. Robert Marier 1991-1994
Born in Montreal, Dr. Robert Marier (1945-) obtained his medical degree from the University of Montreal in 1970 and his certification in Obstetrics and Gynecology in 1978. Dr. Marier has always been very involved in the organizations he has worked with. Before becoming president of the FMSQ, he was, among other things:
- President of the Fédération des médecins résidents du Québec (FMRQ) from 1972 to 1974.
- Member of several boards of directors and head of department of the hospitals where he has worked
- Founding member of the Fondation pour l'obstétrique-gynécologie du Québec
- Vice-President of the Association of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists of Quebec
Dr. Pierre Gauthier 1994-2001
Dr. Pierre Gauthier (1936-2016) obtained his certification in Pediatrics in 1968. He was one of the few presidents of the FMSQ to have held various positions on the Board of Directors - Consultant, 2nd Vice-President, 1st Vice-President - before becoming President.
Having practiced in Sept-Îles, Dr. Gauthier has developed an expertise in understanding the problems related to the needs of remote regions, particularly the need for medical homelessness.
Dr. Yves Dugré 2001-2006
A native of Pointe-du-Lac, in the Mauricie region, Dr. Yves Dugré (1941-2011) completed his university studies in Quebec City, where he obtained his doctorate in medicine. In 1972, he received his certification in Otolaryngology from the University of Montreal.
While practicing his profession in Trois-Rivières, Dr. Dugré was constantly involved in various medical-professional bodies, thus allowing his colleagues to benefit from his expertise. Thus, he became president of the Association d'oto-rhino-laryngologie et de chirurgie cervico-faciale du Québec from 1987 to 1989.
He subsequently held various elective positions on the Federation's Board of Directors, notably as a consultant and vice-president from 1991 to 2001, then president from 2001 to 2006.
Dr. Gaétan Barrette 2006-2014
Dr. Gaétan Barrette (1956-) received his medical degree from the University of Montreal in 1985. In 1989, he was admitted as an Associate Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada. In 1991, he did a subspecialty in vascular and interventional radiology at the University of California (San Diego).
In addition to his medical practice at Maisonneuve-Rosemont Hospital, Dr. Barrette was President of the Association of Radiologists of Quebec before being elected President of the Fédération des médecins spécialistes du Québec on November 16, 2006. He will resign on March 5, 2014.
Dr. Diane Francœur 2014-2021
Born in the municipality of Amqui, in the Bas-Saint-Laurent, Dr. Diane Francœur (1963-) was the first woman to become president of the Federation. She graduated in medicine from Université Laval in 1987, continued her studies in obstetrics and gynecology at the University of Montreal (1992) and did a subspecialization in pediatric and adolescent gynecology at the University of Louisville School of Medicine in Kentucky.
Prior to joining the Federation, she was President of the Association of obstetricians and gynecologists of Québec from 2004 to 2008 after having held various positions since 1997. Active on the FMSQ Board of Directors since 2009, she has been Vice-President since 2011 until her election as President in 2014. Dr. Francoeur is also Vice-President of the Executive Committee of the Society of Obstetricians and Gynecologists of Canada.
Dr. Vincent Oliva (2021-)
Dr. Vincent Oliva has been an academic interventional radiologist for 30 years. He is the eighth physician specialist to become president of the FMSQ. Until his election, he was the head of the Department of Radiology at CHUM and President of the Association des radiologistes du Québec (2016-2021).