Four patient associations and two groups of caregivers are attacking the State for “culpable deficiency”, accused of not having done enough to avoid the hospital crisis. The envelope of 400 million euros in aid for hospitals “will not solve the problem of a hospital that is collapsing” deplored Thursday on franceinfo Marc de Kerdanet, pediatrician and member of the Inter-Hôpitaux collective.
franceinfo: The government grants an envelope of 400 million euros in aid to hospitals, including 200 million for pediatrics. It’s not enough for you ?
Marc de Kerdanet: The situational problem of bronchiolitis has only underlined the structural problem on which we have been working for a long time. We filed a preliminary complaint on 8 July 2022, we waited until September 8 for an answer, which was not done. It is therefore an implicit decision to reject our request.
It’s great if we can provide some help, but that won’t solve the problem of a collapsing hospital. Each of the staff members is a strut [une pièce de charpente] for the structure and these props are gradually disappearing. The last ones who remain have even more to bear and will eventually all fall apart. We are in a catastrophic situation and we would really like that through this kind of approach, the State stirs up a little.
But what can the government do in the face of the lack of candidates?
There are candidates but they left, disgusted with the conditions offered to them. Theoretically, there is one nurse for every six to eight patients. If there is only one nurse left for 20 patients, she eventually leaves. We cannot attract people with working conditions like that.
“We would like lasting solutions that take into account the discussions that have already taken place.”
Marc de Kerdanet, pediatrician and member of the Inter-Hôpitaux collectiveat franceinfo
The population’s effective access to prevention and care is enshrined in law. It is written in article L 1411-1 that health policy is the responsibility of the State and it is on this that we rely to make this appeal.
What do you blame the state for?
He is accused of faulty shortcomings because he continued to pursue a policy of saving money rather than organizing medicine. The State was more concerned with the financial management of hospitals than with the health of patients. The continuity of the public service, the health of the staff are not taken into account in its decisions. We close beds, we compress the staff, and then we are surprised that it cracks. We have a liner and we put a sailboat crew in it, it can’t work.
All regions are now affected by the bronchiolitis epidemic. What should be done ?
What we usually do for caregivers : hold on. Unfortunately, we are at the end of our resilience. I’ve been working for 40 years and I’ve seen outbreaks of bronchiolitis every year for 40 years, nothing new. It’s perfectly usual, but the more it goes, the less the hospital is ready. We have no place to receive people. It is not a problem of number of beds but of staff. The reality is that we can no longer hold on. We have come to the end of a process and the government must realize this.