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| We learned from media reports that the 3,000 residents of Percé have lost the only family physician at their CLSC. Not having timely access to appropriate care can lead to serious health problems, particularly among vulnerable people.
Research conducted at CIRANO provides insights into the pressing challenge of attracting and retaining physicians in rural areas. The authors had access to unique data tracing the successive practice episodes of all new family physicians who began practising in Quebec between 1975 and 2024.
Quebec policies have helped improve the attraction and retention of physicians in remote or isolated regions over the past few decades, but the problem remains far from resolved. |
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| | | | | | Does working from home lead to a decrease in the use of transportation infrastructure and a reduction in pollutant emissions? |
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| A recent CIRANO report examined this issue and reached the following conclusions. |
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| | The positive effects of working from home are not as significant as might have been expected |
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| | With new daily routines, some commutes to work are being replaced by trips for other reasons |
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| | Teleworking is not the solution to the environmental problems resulting from individuals’ travel choices |
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| | The Act to Promote the Development and Recognition of Workforce Skills—or the “1% Act”—has marked its 30th anniversary. How effective has it been? |
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| A recent CIRANO report provides three possible answers. |
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| | The law played a role in helping Quebec catch up in the area of structured and formal education |
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| | However, it is not clear whether the ultimate goal of improving the workforce’s skills and qualifications has been achieved |
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| | A recommendation? Include mechanisms in the law to monitor progress toward and achievement of objectives. |
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| | A MINUTE WITH A RESEARCHER |
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| | | With François Vaillancourt (University of Montreal, CIRANO) |
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| Advanced mathematical knowledge plays a vital role in many sectors: engineering, forecasting, public policy, healthcare, and more. But what is its actual contribution to Quebec’s economy? |
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| | | | | On October 6, 2026, from 5:00 to 6:00 p.m., Catherine Beaudry (Polytechnique Montréal, CIRANO), recipient of the 2026 Gérard-Parizeau Award, will present the lecture “Propelling Innovation Through Data” at HEC Montréal as part of the official award ceremony. The lecture will be followed by a panel discussion featuring Patrick Cohendet (HEC Montréal, CIRANO), Luc Sirois, Quebec’s Chief Innovator, and Sophie Veilleux (Université Laval), moderated by Benoit Dostie (HEC Montréal, CIRANO). |
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| | | On November 13 and 14, 2026, the 7th CEAR–RSI Workshop will bring together researchers at HEC Montréal whose work focuses on household financial decisions. Jointly organized by HEC Montréal’s Retirement and Savings Institute, its Financial Education Laboratory, and the Center for the Economic Analysis of Risk at Georgia State University, the workshop will cover topics including saving, investing, retirement, financial education, and risk management. Matthew J. Notowidigdo (University of Chicago Booth School of Business) will deliver the keynote address. |
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| | | On November 27, CIRANO’s Experimental and Behavioral Research Group will hold its 5th workshop devoted to experimental and behavioral research. This edition will notably feature Edda Claus (Wilfrid Laurier University) and bring together research on a variety of topics examined through the lens of behavioral economics using rigorous statistical methods. The day will also include a series of brown bag presentations. |
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| | | | | On September 30 at Théâtre Outremont, Pierre-Carl Michaud (HEC Montréal), President and CEO of CIRANO, took part in a discussion following the screening of the documentary “Nid-de-poule,” directed by Paul-Maxime Corbin. Alongside the director and actress Eve Duranceau, he discussed how citizens relate to public goods, collective choices regarding infrastructure, and the shared responsibilities involved in maintaining them. The documentary draws in part on the CIRANO report “Quebec Infrastructure Plan: Interprovincial Comparison and Sustainability,” co-authored by Pierre-Carl Michaud, Louis Lévesque, Marcelin Joanis, Jonathan Brasseur, and Quentin Winstel. |
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| | | The Baromètre de la confiance des consommateurs québécois à l’égard des aliments, developed by CIRANO in partnership with MAPAQ, is among the finalists for the Institut d’administration publique du Québec’s (IAPQ) 2026 Scientific Collaboration Award. Conducted every two years since 2019, the Barometer tracks changes in consumer confidence and contributes, in particular, to monitoring the 2025–2035 Biofood Policy. The award recipients will be announced on November 26, 2026. |
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| | | | Nathalie De Marcellis-Warin, Carole Vincent |
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| The 2026 special issue of PERSPECTIVES, “Education and Workforce: For a More Productive and Equitable Society,” brings together six articles stemming from research projects conducted at CIRANO. This issue examines educational choices, inequalities, as well as transformations and challenges in the labour market, including lower educational attainment among boys, the wealth gap between Quebec and Ontario, skills needs related to the bioeconomy, mismatches between labour supply and demand, hybrid work, and the 30th anniversary of Quebec’s 1% Act. |
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| | | Bernard Korai, Rémy Lambert |
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| The adoption of the Sustainable Agriculture Plan (PAD 2020–2030) has strengthened the agri-environmental efforts undertaken by Quebec agricultural producers, who often have to go beyond regulatory requirements and bear significant costs. But are these efforts sufficiently recognized and valued by the public? In a CIRANO study (Korai et al., 2025), the authors examine public perceptions of agricultural sustainability and propose several avenues for reflection to better recognize and promote the farming profession among the general public. |
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| | | | | | Bernard Fortin, Josette Rosine Aniwuvi Gbeto |
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| This report analyzes the effects of various Quebec policies on the retention and regional mobility of family physicians between 1975 and 2024, using longitudinal data from the Canadian Institute for Health Information. The analyses show that retention remains significantly lower in remote or isolated regions. The estimates also suggest that differential remuneration and regional medical staffing plans (PREMs) are associated with better retention, particularly in these regions, while scholarships tied to a service obligation do not appear to extend physicians’ length of stay once that obligation has been fulfilled. The authors therefore stress the importance of assessing physician distribution policies not only by their ability to attract physicians to rural and remote areas, but also by their ability to retain them over the longer term. |
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| | | | François Vaillancourt, Genevieve Vaillancourt |
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| In this working paper, François Vaillancourt and Genevieve Vaillancourt examine francophones’ access to managerial positions in Quebec using data from the 1981, 2001, and 2021 Canadian censuses. The descriptive results indicate that bilingualism among francophones and anglophones is associated with slightly greater access to managerial positions for both men and women compared with unilingual francophones, whose situation nevertheless improved in 2021 relative to 1981 and 2001. The multivariate analyses also confirm the importance of bilingualism as an attribute associated with access to a managerial position. |
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| | | | | This document analyzes the evolution of working from home in Canada between 2016 and 2026 using data from the 2016 Census of Population and supplements to the Labour Force Survey from May 2020 to May 2026. Despite recent return-to-office policies introduced by some businesses and governments, the study shows that the proportion of Canadians working most of their hours from home has more than doubled over the past decade. These results suggest that, in some sectors, businesses continue to experiment with different forms of working from home, whether hybrid or fully remote, or view them as advantageous, particularly for employee retention, profitability, and productivity. |
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| | | Antoine Rondeau, Olivier Jacques |
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| This document examines the role of the private sector in Quebec’s health care system and, from a comparative perspective, analyzes the documented effects of its expansion. The authors’ review of the scientific literature focuses in particular on costs, wait times, access, and quality of care. They emphasize that it is difficult to establish that the private sector is more efficient, provides higher-quality care, or costs less than the public sector. They also identify several risks associated with its expansion, particularly for wait times in the public system, costs, access, and equity, and propose various avenues for preserving Quebec’s public health care model. |
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| | | CIRANO news on our social networks |
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Corporate partners
Autorité des marchés financiers Banque de développement du Canada Banque du Canada Banque Nationale du Canada Bell Canada BMO Groupe financier La Caisse Énergir Hydro-Québec Intact Corporation Financière Mouvement Desjardins Power Corporation du Canada Pratt & Whitney Canada VIA Rail Canada |
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Governmental partners
Ministère des Finances du Québec Ministère de l'Économie, de l'Innovation et de l’Énergie Innovation, Sciences et Développement Économique Canada Ville de Montréal |
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University partners
École de technologie supérieure École nationale d’administration publique HEC Montréal Institut national de la recherche scientifique Polytechnique Montréal Université Concordia Université de Montréal Université de Sherbrooke Université du Québec Université du Québec à Montréal Université Laval Université McGill |
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