the Lille University Hospital maternity unit transfers its patients and their babies to other hospitals in France and Belgium until May

The maternity hospital of Lille University Hospital (North) has been transferring its patients and their babies to other hospitals in the region or in Belgium since the Christmas holidays and until May 2, due to the lack of doctors, the establishment confirms France Bleu Nord.

The Jeanne de Flandre maternity hospital in Lille is the largest in mainland France. Each year, it records more than 5,000 births. But she must face the lack of “doctors to replace those who left for different reasons, to also supplement the staff and there are doctors on sick leave as well, which is why the decision was taken to reduce the reception capacity”, explains a spokesperson for the CHU to France Bleu Nord. The establishment has therefore decided to restrict its reception capacity.

Transfers decided on a “case by case” basis

The most serious pathologies are always treated in this maternity hospital, such as very premature babies or babies and pregnant women whose state of health requires on-site care. But the other patients and their babies are transferred to other hospitals in the surrounding area: Roubaix, Valenciennes, Arras, Lens, Seclin, the Bois clinic and Saint-Vincent-à-Lille, as well as Charleroi in Belgium.

Usually these transfers are organized in the summer when staff go on vacation. This is unprecedented in this maternity ward at this time, specifies France Bleu Nord. The CHU specifies that the transfers are decided “on a case by case basis, with medical advice but above all in the best conditions of safety and supervision for children”.