Philippe Couillard
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Minister of Health and Social Services | |
|---|---|
| Incumbent | |
| Riding | Jean-Talon (2007-present), Mont-Royal (2003-2007) |
| In office since | May 1, 2003 |
| Preceded by | Margaret F. Delisle |
| Born | June 26, 1957 Montreal, Quebec |
| Political party |
Quebec Liberal Party |
| Profession(s) | Teacher, neurosurgeon |
| Spouse | Suzanne Pilote |
Philippe Couillard M.D., (born June 26, 1957 in Montreal) is a politician, and former university professor and neurosurgeon in Quebec, Canada. He currently serves as the Quebec Minister for Health and Social Services in the government of Jean Charest. Couillard holds a medical degree and a certification in neurosurgery from the Université de Montréal. He was the head of the department of neurosurgery at St-Luc hospital from 1989 to 1992 and again at the Centre Hospitalier Universitaire de Sherbrooke from 1996 to 2003. From 1992 to 1996, he practised in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia. In 2003, he left the medical profession to run for a seat in the National Assembly representing the Quebec Liberal Party. He was elected MNA for Mont-Royal in the 2003 election and was appointed Minister of Health and Social Services on April 29, 2003.
Since taking office, he has proven quite skillful in the handling of his department's public relations and is regarded by a few people as the most popular minister in the Charest government.[1] His accomplishments during his tenure have included a $4.2 billion dollar increase in the Quebec health budget, the prohibition of smoking in public places, and a reduction in the number of union local accreditations in the health sector.
Other projects that may possibly be realised in the future are the construction of two super-hospitals in the Montreal area, that of Université de Montréal and another one from the McGill University. However, planning for these projects has been delayed for various reasons for over eight years (as of 1999) and to date construction has not begun on either super-hospital[2]. It should be noted that both of these projects were conceived long before Couillard came to power, and in fact Couillard himself has significantly contributed to their delay as he sought to decrease his government's funding of them through the creation of public-private partnerships.
In 2006 and 2007, there were rumours that Couillard would jump to federal politics and being a candidate for the Conservative Party of Canada in a future federal election, but denied it. [1] Meanwhile, Couillard announced his candidacy for the riding of Jean-Talon in the Quebec City area, replacing Margaret Delisle who did not seek a re-election due to health reasons. Couillard won the 2007 elections despite the Action democratique du Quebec's (ADQ) strong performance in the region in which the party gained the majority of the seats. Pierre Arcand succeeded Couillard in the Mont-Royal riding. He was renamed the Health and Social Services Minister as well as the responsible for the Capitale-Nationale (Quebec) region.
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ Le Devoir. Ministère - Un réseau en santé... relative. Retrieved on October 6, 2006.
- ^ The Gazette. Talking time is over. Retrieved on November 27, 2006.
[edit] External links
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by François Legault |
Minister of Health and Social Services (Quebec) 2003 to present |
Succeeded by Incumbent |
| National Assembly of Quebec | ||
| Preceded by Margaret F. Delisle |
MNA for Jean-Talon 2007–present |
Succeeded by incumbent |
| Preceded by Andre Tranchemontagne |
MNA for Mont-Royal 2003–2007 |
Succeeded by Pierre Arcand |
