Who We Are

Giving all children the chance for a healthy childhood

DocTocToc was founded to break barriers in accessing health services by meeting families where they are. Our approach is centred on the family’s capacity for action and collaboration between various resources in the healthcare network and community sector.

What motivates us? Giving each child a healthy start in life to allow them to reach their full potential. If prevention is better than cure, it’s better to intervene sooner rather than later.

DocTocToc’s 5 pillars of action

Mobile clinic

The DocTocToc mobile clinic offers free health and psychosocial services to children aged 0 to 5 who are not yet served by the health and social services system. The clinic, housed in a 100% energy-efficient bus, travels to Montreal North, a part of the city where children with developmental vulnerabilities are overrepresented when starting kindergarten. This has a negative impact on their academic success and ability to reach their full potential.

Partnerships and cross-sector collaboration

On top of caring for small children, the DocTocToc team orients families toward relevant resources in their sector. It also creates partnerships and is always looking to collaborate with community organizations working with families and the health and social services network. The goal is to create a safety net for children, giving them the best chance to reach their full potential.

Teaching

The mobile clinic is a place to train future professionals (doctors, nurses, psychosocial care workers, project managers).

Research and evaluation

The mobile clinic’s operations allow the DocTocToc team to conduct research, principally on proximity health services aimed at vulnerable families, health inequities and barriers in access to healthcare for children aged 0 to 5.

Knowledge translation and advocacy

The DocTocToc team is committed to sharing knowledge gathered on the field thanks to the mobile clinic. Publications, conferences, advice, guidance and other presentations seek to help the community better understand the barriers in access to healthcare faced by young children and develop better ways to serve families in situations of vulnerability.

The little story of DocTocToc

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DocTocToc is an initiative by Dr. Rislaine Benkelfat, a pediatrician at the Montreal Children’s Hospital. In her practice, she is regularly confronted with the multiple barriers vulnerable families face in accessing healthcare. In 2017, she decided to obtain her MBA at HEC Montréal in the hopes of finding an innovative solution to improve medical and psychosocial care for children. That’s when she first had the idea for a mobile clinic, a model that’s already seen great success in Canada and across the world.

Ma MobiClinique was created in 2017, with the support of Jean-Philippe Couture, a financial analyst specialized in public funding for nonprofit organizations. Incorporated in 2018 and rebaptized DocTocToc the following year, the organization developed partnerships with the Montreal Children’s Hospital Foundation and McGill University.

In 2020, DocTocToc was officially designated a registered charity. In August of the same year, in close collaboration with the CIUSSS du Nord-de-l’Île-de-Montréal and the nonprofit Parole d’excluEs, the team organized a pop-up pediatric care clinic in Montreal North, a neighborhood with high poverty rates.

Three years later, at the Montreal North annual health fair, DocTocToc hosted a neurodevelopmental screening event for children aged 0 to 5, again in close collaboration with the CIUSSS du Nord-de-l’Île-de-Montréal.

DocTocToc’s first two activities were a huge success. Their high attendance rates and the problems the team identified among children demonstrated a real need for care and access to health services.

On March 19, 2025, the DocTocToc mobile clinic was inaugurated, in partnership with the Montreal Children’s Hospital Foundation and McGill University’s Faculty of Medicine. DocTocToc hopes to care for 1,500 children per year, all while pursuing its mission in teaching, research, evaluation, knowledge translation and advocacy. The team is also seeking out partnerships and collaborations with various resources in the field.

Awards:

2017: Coup de cœur Award from Hacking Health Montreal at the Desjardins Coopérathon

2018: Participation in the Je fais Mtl movement

2018: First place tie in the Tocqueville Challenge in Paris

2019: McGill Dobson Cup finalist in the Social Enterprise Track

2019: OSEntreprendre Finalist in the Service to Individuals Category

2019: Innovator of the Year Award presented to Dr. Rislaine Benkelfat by REPAF (Réseau des entrepreneurs et professionnels africains)

Founders

Dr. Rislaine Benkelfat is a pediatrician at the Montreal Children’s Hospital and assistant professor in the Department of Pediatrics at McGill University. With her specialized training in pediatric medicine and master’s degree in business administration (MBA), she brings together her scientific expertise and strategic vision to provide innovative care adapted to the needs of children and their families. Dr. Rislaine Benkelfat is devoted and determined, motivated by a real passion for improving pediatric healthcare. With her unifying energy, she has a talent for mobilizing others in the name of DocTocToc.

Jean-Philippe Couture is a financial analyst specialized in public funding for nonprofit organizations. A trained actuary with a master’s degree in business administration (MBA), he distinguishes himself through his analytical mind and pragmatism. Thanks to his insatiable curiosity and passion for his field, Jean-Philippe Couture knows how to put best practices and recent innovations in finance to the service of DocTocToc.

Make the difference

Meet the DocTocToc team

DocTocToc brings together a committed team of professionals, passionate about child health and development. Each member of our team brings unique expertise and skills to the table to offer vulnerable children and their families quality care.