A ” critical situation “a Cape “extremely difficult to pass” : on the eve of Christmas, the authorities are calling on health professionals to “the sacred union” to relieve hospitals weakened by the lack of staff and overwhelmed by winter epidemics.
“We are not on the verge of saturation, we are totally saturated”alerted this Friday, December 23 on BFM TV Parisian emergency physician Patrick Pelloux. ” Never seen “ according to him, even at the height of the Covid-19 crisis.
François Braun evokes a “critical situation” in hospitals facing three winter epidemics
In addition to the high-level spread of the coronavirus, there was acute bronchiolitis in infants and particularly strong flu in the elderly. This “triple winter epidemic” puts an already bloodless health system under extreme strain due to a structural lack of caregivers, despite the billions of euros poured in since 2020 as part of the Ségur de la santé to strengthen the attractiveness of the sector.
“A solemn appeal to the liberals”
Evoking a ” critical situation “the director general of the Île-de-France regional health agency (ARS), Amélie Verdier, launched “a solemn appeal to the liberals, to the private sector so that there is a mobilization of all to relieve the hospitals”.
Nora Sahara, ex-nurse: “We are disgusted, then we wonder why the hospital is no longer attractive”
A “kind of sacred union”, according to the formula of the Minister of Health, François Braun, who paid a night visit to the Paris Samu and then to the hospital emergencies of Saint-Denis. The former emergency doctor did not hide his concern, predicting a situation “even more complicated next week”, “an extremely difficult course to pass”.
Strike movement in the Grand Est
Calls to 15 which explode, passages to emergencies much higher than normal, patients having to stay long hours on stretchers while waiting for a hospital bed… Difficulties accumulate in most regions. Exhausted or even exceeded, the nursing staff does not hide their exasperation, as in Sarreguemines (Moselle), where a large part of the emergency team has started a strike movement “blocking”.
Mathias Wargon: “We have been short of places in pediatric intensive care for four years, what have we done? Nothing “
“We only see serious patients”told AFP Emmanuelle Seris, head of emergencies at this hospital. “The situation is no longer tenable, it is dangerous for patients and caregivers”adds this Grand Est delegate from the Amuf emergency workers union.
Firefighter in Strasbourg, Cédric Hatzenberger evokes the interminable wait for the sick in emergency vehicles before they can be admitted to the emergency room. “Since the All Saints holidays, it’s been a real disaster”summarizes this trade unionist FO. “We can easily be two or three hours waiting in the emergency parking lot, and it has happened that it goes up to five hours”.
Hire 100,000 nurses over 3 years
Successor to François Braun at the head of the Samu-Urgences union in France, Marc Noizet describes “a broken system”. And he calls the state “to trigger an exceptional national response, of the “white plan” type”, on the scale of France. Such a device would impose drastic organizational measures, with in particular a postponement of leave.
In Île-de-France, the boss of the ARS dismisses such a plan for the moment, noting that “health establishments wanted caregivers to be able to take well-deserved leave”.
Laurie, midwife: “After the third shift in a row, I’m afraid of making a mistake”
But it has made temporary arrangements to avoid further congestion in hospitals. Saturday mornings 24 and 31 December will be remunerated as “outpatient care” (PDSA) to promote the taking of call duty in city medicine. Hundreds of health students will come to strengthen hospital services. In addition, solutions have been found for precarious or elderly patients who no longer require hospitalization, in order to free up beds, according to the ARS.
Beyond short-term decisions, long-term measures are expected. A collective of more than 5,000 doctors, caregivers and hospital workers demanded this week, among other things, a defined schedule and a maximum patient-to-nurse ratio. What would require hiring “about 100,000 nurses” over three years.
François Braun repeated Thursday evening that he would see “from January” the supply of care, “territory by territory”, based on the work of the National Council for Refoundation (CNR). With the promise of “Tackling the health system head-on to reform it”.
