A former employee who was still there at the start of 2022 summarizes the situation in one sentence: “We didn’t have time.” And she’s not the only one to have had this feeling. In Saint-Martin-Osmonville (Seine-Maritime), EHPAD “La Maison Normande”taken over by the Bridge group in 2020, is today implicated by several ex-employees, current carers and families of former residents, for dysfunctions which are added to those revealed this Friday by the investigation cell of Radio France.
“The toilets were out of service for a long time”
“The rooms weren’t perfect and we didn’t take the time to stay with the residents, because we didn’t have time”, continues this former employee of the establishment, who wishes to remain anonymous, and whose feelings echo the other testimonies collected by France Bleu Normandie. In fact, every time the people questioned underline a “lack of means” which is felt both in the work of the staff and in the services offered to the residents.
On the general state of the establishment, which accommodates about twenty elderly people, the stories are thus very critical. “‘Dilapidated’ is perhaps a bit strong as a term, and still I think that in some places it was really that”estimates Béatrice Godey, whose mother, 84 years old at the time, remained nine months in the EHPAD, until November 2021.
“In my mother’s room, the bathroom looked very nice since it had just been redone.continues Béatrice Godey. But in use, we realized that the slope of the walk-in shower was made upside down: the water flowed towards the room and the staff put sheets on the floor to retain the water and to mop up.”
“My mother’s toilet was out of order for quite a while, so when I was 84, my mother was throwing a bucket of water down the toilet as a flush. The seat was also broken, which caused my mother to sit on porcelain for weeks”says Béatrice Godey again.
“It’s crazy”
Another testimony: that of Marie-Claude Pois, whose mother, suffering from Alzheimer’s disease, remained seven years in Saint-Martin-Osmonville, until her death in September 2021. According to her, the situation is deteriorated with the arrival of the Bridge group. “I have absolutely nothing to say about the staff. It’s about the management: there was a lack of resources, it’s crazy”explains this woman, who paid up to 3,000 euros per month, between the price of the room and the additional costs, so that his mother is taken care of in this EHPAD. At “La Maison Normande”, a room costs a minimum of 2,500 euros per month.
In addition to cleaning, Marie-Claude Pois regrets the lack of staff and in particular the absence of a nurse on weekends : “My mum had such a deep bedsore that they had to put in a wick, which requires care every day. The nurse being there on Fridays and coming back on Mondays, during the weekend there is no had no care. A caregiver agreed to do it, but told me that she had no right.”
The perceived lack of means and personnel, shared by all the testimonies we have collected, leads those who are there a feeling of having to “rush his work”. “It was profitability before well-being”estimates a former employee, who left “La Maison Normande” in the fall of 2021. She describes saving candles, out of order or dilapidated equipment, quotes for rejected animations “because it was too expensive”doorbells to call staff in non-working rooms, etc. “For what people are paying, it’s outrageous”further believes the employee who left the EHPAD in January 2022.
“I found myself carrying medicine in my car because there was no one to bring it back to the EHPAD”, adds a carer, who has been working in Saint-Martin-Osmonville for 25 years. He regrets the “depersonalization” care and services: “Everyone is a number, both at the level of employees and residents.”
Bridge’s response
It is also to be underlined: no fact of mistreatment has been reported, and the various testimonies all underline the professionalism and dedication of the staff, in this small establishment located in a rural area. A caregiver evokes a complicated period, while specifying that the situation is improving.
Asked about these testimonies, Bridge agreed to answer our questions. The group first evokes a “alert on the behavior of a former director of the establishment, which was already in place under the former owners”. “This survey, is it written, brought to light unacceptable behavior and the necessary measures were taken last October. Since then, the social climate within the establishment has been healthy and all the staff are committed to providing the best services and care to the residents.” In Saint-Martin-Osmonville, the new management took office on January 19, 2022.
Bridge also highlights the investments made in this EHPAD: “We have carried out major work: repairs to the exterior surroundings and the entrance to the establishment, renovation of rooms with replacement of shower blocks not suitable for people with reduced mobility with walk-in showers, replacement of floors on the second floor of the EHPAD, etc. We have also modernized the logistics and drug transport circuit, with the purchase of refrigerated and pharmaceutical equipment, for example.In addition, the budget allocated to entertainment and catering are on the rise constant in this nursing home.”
On lack of staffhere’s Bridge’s response as well: “We are in the process of recruiting several staff members. Thus, in April, 2 nursing assistants were recruited and are on night shift, in addition to the teams already in place. A coordinating doctor will join the establishment next Monday , in support of the nurse coordinator who is currently stationed in two establishments in the department.”
The establishment is also actively looking for nursing staff, “but the recruitment difficulties in the sector are real”underlines the group, which reiterates that “the quality of the reception of the residents and the well-being of the employees are its first priorities”.