# Rethinking Healthcare in Quebec: Frontline Insights on Connected Care Canonical source: [https://www.braver.net/en/blog/rethinking-healthcare-in-quebec-frontline-insights-on-connected-care/]() The Braver journal At the annual TELUS Health Conference, Marie-Lou Gagnon, our President and Co-Founder, took part in a panel discussion on a topic we live every day at Braver: how to modernize Quebec’s healthcare system in practical ways without losing sight of the human element. ![Marie-Lou Gagnon]() Marie-Lou Gagnon June 4, 2026 ![Panel discussion at the annual TELUS Health Conference with Marie-Lou Gagnon, CEO of Braver.]() Moderated by **Maryse Bélanger** (TELUS Health), the discussion also featured **Julie Labbé**, President and CEO of the Saguenay–Lac-Saint-Jean Integrated University Health and Social Services Centre (CIUSSS). Over the course of nearly an hour, the panel explored realities that healthcare teams face every day: fragmented systems, clinician burnout, interoperability, the growing role of AI, virtual care, and one challenge that remains too often overlooked: the ability to **collaborate more effectively around the patient**. What stood out most is that digital transformation is ultimately a matter of alignment: technology aligned with the needs and realities of the people who use it, people aligned with change, and a shared vision embraced by all. ## Everyday Friction: The Small Irritations That Add Up One of the most compelling moments of the panel was the discussion around the “micro-frictions” clinicians experience in their daily work. They are rarely dramatic problems. Instead, they are small obstacles that accumulate over time: one more login, systems that don’t communicate with each other, notifications that can’t be fully trusted, missing documents when they are needed most, or a fax sent with no certainty it was ever received. Individually, these issues may seem minor. Collectively, they become a significant source of frustration and cognitive burden. As Marie-Lou put it: *“Micro-irritants can create a tremendous amount of mental load.”* At Braver, that statement captures much of our obsession with usability. Because healthcare teams are not asking for more tools. They are asking for **greater fluidity**, greater confidence, and ultimately greater peace of mind. Marie-Lou expressed it clearly: *“At Braver, we want our users to have peace of mind when using our application.”* ## Interoperability: No Longer a Nice-to-Have Interoperability emerged as a central theme, but from a very practical perspective: **how do we make legacy systems coexist with modern solutions without turning integration into an endless project?** Marie-Lou emphasized that this coexistence is only possible when new systems are **highly flexible**. More importantly, the strategy cannot stop at simply “having an API.” Successful integration requires a broader set of tools and mechanisms that allow solutions to fit naturally into healthcare ecosystems, which are often far more complex than a simple exchange of data. It also goes beyond standards—even FHIR. Sustainable integration must be **scalable**, **reliable**, **auditable**, and designed with **cybersecurity** at its core. Yet even when everything is connected, the fundamental question remains: data may be available, but **will it actually be used?** The difference lies in usability—delivering the right information, at the right time, in the right place, and in a format that supports action and adoption. And throughout a patient’s care journey, we cannot overlook one critical component: **conversations**. They often carry clinical information in their own right. When those exchanges are scattered across communication tools that were never designed for healthcare, important context is lost—sometimes enough to influence the course of care. ## AI: Valuable When It Improves Collaboration The panel also explored AI through a nuanced lens. At Braver, we believe AI should help make information **more accessible, easier to digest, and more actionable** for healthcare teams. Not replace people—support them. Automatic summaries, longitudinal patient overviews, clinical documentation, and teleconsultation transcription all have significant potential to reduce administrative burden and give clinicians more time to focus on care. But there is a condition: it is not enough for information to exist. It must be available at the right moment, in the right context, and in a format that is genuinely useful. As Marie-Lou noted: *“Available doesn’t necessarily mean utilized.”* ## A Transformation We Must Build Together Another recurring theme throughout the discussion was that digital transformation cannot be driven by a single team, vendor, or department. It must be built collaboratively with clinicians, frontline teams, patients, partners, and healthcare leaders. As Marie-Lou explained: *“Implementing innovation in healthcare means constantly making sure we are all aligned.”* That requires more than technology. It requires listening, humility, and shared governance. Marie-Lou summarized it well: *“Taking the time to listen and showing humility allows us to recognize both our own limitations and the expertise of others.”* ## Returning to What Matters Most: The Patient Despite all the discussion around systems, data, and AI, the conversation ultimately returned to where it should always begin and end: people. Modernizing healthcare is not simply about connecting platforms. It is about giving clinicians more time, reducing friction, supporting care teams, and helping patients feel genuinely cared for throughout their healthcare journey. As Julie Labbé reminded the audience in closing: *“We never go wrong when we keep the patient at the center.”* 📺 Watch the full discussion here: [Conversation on Modernizing Healthcare in Quebec]() [https://www.telus.com/fr/health/annual-conference#tab-quebec-modernization]() [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=19PPfdmrXxo]()