France Rein association calls for priority access for people with kidney failure

Traffic restrictions on the roads are in place for the duration of the Olympic Games. The association is requesting a priority pass for dialysis patients so that they can travel to their treatment center.

The traffic restrictions during the Olympic Games, which begin on July 26, will pose problems for people who need dialysis. There are about 7,000 of them in the Paris region. According to France Rein, some patients will have difficulty getting to their treatment center on time for their dialysis. The association is calling for priority access for these patients.

The Paris prefecture has not given the green light to allow these patients to move freely, regardless of the area they are crossing. However, access to their treatment center is a vital need for them. These patients whose kidneys no longer function need dialysis, three times a week. For four hours, their blood is cleaned and then reinjected into their body. Without this dialysis, the patients’ lives are in danger.

In reality, treatment can be delayed by one or two days at most. Parisian hospitals have notably postponed appointments to avoid the day of the opening ceremony, July 26, or certain events. But these patients come from all over the Ile-de-France region, sometimes from neighboring regions. They will need to travel from their home or work to their dialysis center for the entire duration of the Games. “When there is no dialysis for a day or two, the patients’ diet must be restrictedunderlines Brigitte Thévenin-Lemoine, vice-president of France Rein. It’s hard for them to have a sword of Damocles hanging over their heads and knowing that their appointment is going to be postponed. The slightest change in treatment makes them extremely anxious.”

The association is therefore demanding priority access for patients. “What we are asking is relatively simple: that patients can move around with a certificate from their establishment, from their medical team, indicating that they are on dialysis, so that they can move around as freely as possible and that the police are informed.”explains the vice-president of France Rein, Brigitte Thévenin-Lemoine.

This pass requested by the association would allow patients to use the traffic lanes reserved for accredited vehicles for the entire duration of the Games, by car, ambulance or taxi.