Medical deserts: in Essonne, the city of Vert-le-Grand has been looking for a doctor for 18 months

At each entrance to the city, the message is posted along the road or on the bridges: Vert-le-Grand (Essone) looking for a general practitioner. Classifieds have been posted in the newspapers, on the networks social and a spirited video was even produced to convince the young boarders to settle in the village. But nothing helps. only 40km of Paris, the commune has remained without a doctor for 18 months, heart of a medical desert.

“They may be scared because it’s a small town, they’re scared, I don’t know what“, said a resident. “I still have a husband who is very ill, and three days ago I almost called 15 again.“says another. The last doctor retired and since then the municipality has prepared everything for his successor. The town hall offers the rent for six months, in a nursing home which already has two nurses and a podiatrist.

But the position does not attract. Candidates prefer to work in hospitals. Most doctors in surrounding towns are not taking new patients. Some residents have given up their treatment in the face of so much difficulty.