Santé Québec has expanded its use of AI by launching a virtual assistant for the Info-Santé 811 line, as efforts to reduce wait times and improve the province’s phone health consultation service continue.
Launched in October, the Info-Santé 811 Virtual Assistant lets Quebecers complete an online form with their general information and describe their symptoms before speaking with a nurse.
“The information gathered is then organized to better prepare for the conversation with nursing staff. The tool does not make a diagnosis or provide clinical recommendations. Assessment and clinical decisions remain the responsibility of health-care professionals,” Santé Québec told CTV News.
“It aims to reduce certain administrative tasks so that nurses can devote more time to advising users and carrying out clinical assessments.”
The service is currently available in five regions across Quebec, including Quebec City, the Laurentians, the Eastern Townships, Saguenay–Lac-Saint-Jean and Chaudière-Appalaches.
Santé Québec tells CTV News that 3,205 connections were recorded on the 811 Virtual Assistant in October, with users spending an average of 10.9 minutes on the platform.
Between Sept. 29 and Oct. 27, the average handling time for an 811 call at the call centres hosting the pilot projects fell from 29 minutes 38 seconds to 22 minutes 49 seconds — a reduction of 6 minutes 49 seconds.
“Although the 811 Virtual Assistant has only recently become available, the initial data are encouraging,” Santé Québec said.
Santé Québec said the virtual assistant is expected to become available across the province over time.
The virtual assistant follows another recent Santé Québec initiative, which diverts influenza and gastroenteritis calls to non-clinical agents using an AI-powered app.
The app reduces the number of calls transferred to a nurse, allowing them to handle more complex calls.
Between Jan. 14 and Oct. 31, 60,304 calls were handled through this pathway, and around 36 per cent of users had their needs addressed without being transferred to a nurse, according to Santé Québec.
The measure currently applies to adults, but Santé Québec said it will be extended to pediatric patients starting Nov. 24.
811 line is overwhelmed
Both initiatives come as Santé Québec continues work that began last fall to improve the province’s Info-Santé 811 line through a series of new measures.
The health line aims to reduce unnecessary visits to hospital emergency rooms, which often operate over capacity, by providing health-care advice over the phone.
However, the 811 health line is also frequently overwhelmed.
It handles roughly 6,000 calls each day, and wait times to speak to a nurse can reach at least an hour, sometimes longer. Calls typically last approximately 30 minutes or more.
During the line’s winter peak season, from November to March, wait times can exceed two hours.
On Dec. 27, 2025, Info-Santé 811 recorded its longest wait time in nearly four years, with callers waiting nearly two and a half hours to speak with a nurse.
Santé-Quebec data show the line has been getting progressively busier each year since April 2022.
While call volumes typically begin to decline in March after the winter peak season, calls began rising again in April this year, resulting in a busier summer compared with previous years.
In addition to its AI measures, the agency said it is also working to increase staffing at its 811 call centres.
Local talent wants to help
Some Quebecers are urging the province to leverage local talent to help develop digital tools more efficiently that could further improve the health-care system.
In October, a Montreal-based company launched an AI chatbot to make Quebec’s health-care system easier to navigate and help relieve pressure from the province’s 811 line.
The chatbot, Agent Santé, aims to answer Quebecers’ questions about the health-care system, including how to access care, find pharmacies, and book appointments.
Unlike other chatbots, the platform uses only the Quebec government’s web pages to ensure its answers are based on official information.
“Some of the 811 callers just need to know where to get care, get vaccinated, or find an open pharmacy. Answering those questions online frees nurses for the calls that need them,” said Pascal Hebert, CEO of CloudRaker.
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As of Nov. 4, almost 300 conversations were started on the chatbot. Most questions were about disease, medicines, accessing care, and vaccination.
“It’s easy to imagine the impact if this were a government tool with much more traffic.”
In August, a Quebec software engineer also developed an app to track emergency department wait times, occupancies, and long-term trends.
Although the Quebec government and Urgences-santé have their own tracking system, the existing government system only displays current wait times through a web browser.
The app aims to ease pressure on hospitals by helping Quebecers make more informed decisions about which hospital to visit for non-critical but urgent medical needs.
As of Nov. 4, nearly 1,500 Quebecers had used the tool.
Calls for greater urgency
Hebert said that with multiple services in the health-care system currently overwhelmed, there could be greater urgency to deploy digital tools.
“We want to help, and it’s not just us. There are multiple other businesses in Quebec that can help the government fast-track,” Hebert said.
Santé Québec said it works with external partners on some projects, and uses in-house partners on others.
“Our approach aims to mobilize the skills needed to deliver our digital projects and meet the needs of the health and social services network,” Santé Québec said.
Although it does not always rely on external partners, Santé Québec said it welcomes initiatives that seek to improve access to information and help Quebecers navigate the health-care system more effectively.
“Innovation can come from various sources, and we view this interest in improving the user experience positively,” Santé Québec said.
However, it said it does not endorse or validate tools developed independently and encourages Quebecers to prioritize government platforms.
Based on the results of the Virtual Assistant pilot project, the health agency said it is assessing adapting it for other Santé Québec services.
“AI can help prepare information, avoid having to enter the same details multiple times, and organize work. However, AI is obviously not enough on its own to relieve pressure on services,” the health agency said.
