Catherine Michel has set down her tent on the tarmac in full sun in front of the reception of the intercommunal hospital of Bourg-Saint-Andéol, in Ardèche. The caregiver started a hunger strike this Thursday, April 21. “It’s my only way to act. I want to be repaired, cleared and recognized as a victim”she indicates in front of a panel where is written by hand “Wrongly accused, I am starting a hunger strike”.
The story dates back to March 2021. “I was accused of ill-treatment, of hitting a gentleman, explains the nurse. “I proved during a disciplinary council that it was false but the director does not take it into account”. Another complaint was also filed: another elderly person allegedly had a bruise on his hand. The 50-year-old is struggling with the situation and goes on sick leave. A few months later, she attempted suicide.
According to the caregiver supported by the FO union, the elderly who allegedly incriminated her would continue to affirm that they are still victims of Catherine Michel when she is no longer present in the premises. She filed a handrail with the gendarmerie.
Since December 16, the date of the disciplinary council, the charges have been reclassified as “abusive familiarity with residents”. Although she receives a reprimand, the council no longer accuses her of hitting a resident. But the director does not seem to want to follow the advice issued during the council, based in particular on images captured by surveillance cameras “which would not exist according to Catherine Michel and the Force-Ouvrière union at the local hospital.
A deeper malaise in the local hospital
But this case reveals a broader malaise according to Force-Ouvrière, which ensures that the situation has deteriorated since the arrival of the new director two years ago. Laëtitia Bayle is a delegate on site: “We enter the hospital, there is a heavy climate. We feel that the caregivers are in pain. We have never had so many absenteeism for two years”. To affirm this, Laetitia Bayle also relies on a 71-page expert report called “Serious Risks” commissioned by the CHSCT – health, safety and working conditions committee – from a private firm of ‘Aix en Provence. It highlights many dysfunctions and potential management problems. “It should be noted that there is a lack of managerial regulation in the governance of the Bourg-Saint-Andéol Viviers Hospital. Consequently, this may tend to dysfunctional behavior by the Management without dialogue and consultation with its subordinates”.
Contacted by France Bleu Drôme Ardèche, the general management based in Montélimar on which the Bourg-Saint-Andéol Viviers Hospital depends, ensures that it takes the full measure of the situation. It will decide after an in-depth study of the file.