Public hospitals across the country are called to strike this Tuesday, October 29. Parliamentary debates on the PLF (finance bill) and the PLFSS (Social Security financing bill) will last until December. In hospitals, the profession is already worried and is calling for a strike this Tuesday, October 29. The staff of the Édouard Toulouse psychiatric hospital, in the northern districts of Marseille, intend to join the movement.
From our correspondent in Marseille, Sophie Bourlet,
In Marseille, the staff of the Édouard Toulouse psychiatric hospital have good reasons to join the national strike: in less than a month, 25 beds will be eliminated. This is half of the current 50, for more than 100,000 inhabitants in the northern districts. While the mental health of the French continues to deteriorate, for patients, it is not easy to find an appointment. Julia, 24, comes to the other side of town for a consultation. She regrets the lack of psychiatrists. “There are no new psychiatrists, there are no new things being done unfortunately. I don’t blame psychiatrists because they do what they can. But there is a severe lack. »
Olivier Boyer, from the FO union, does the math: today only a third of the beds remain in 1985, when he started working. According to him, the situation is not tenable. “ Refusals to hospitalize, therefore patients in crisis to whom we say: “No, we cannot take you”, these patients will be monitored at home, so it will be very heavy for colleagues, he is indignant. And in my opinion dangerous, because we must still keep in mind that in the cities of the northern districts, some do not fit there. »
Also readMental health in the northern districts of Marseille: access to care has become impossible
“ There are patients who give us weapons”
A risk for patients and caregivers alike. Kader Benayed, from the majority Sud Santé union, recalls that the Édouard Toulouse hospital is located in one of the poorest areas of Francea particularly sensitive area. “ I saw three news stories in two days, three news stories, he insists. These were three people who were known to our services. They needed care and at one point we had to take them out to bring in a patient who was more in crisis. »
In addition, according to the trade unionist, there are more and more patients with the status of D.398, that is to say the status of detainee. “There are patients who take us out of arms, there are points of deal inside the care units. When family arrives to see patients and they are told no, caregivers are often threatened. 30 patients for three caregivers. It’s true that when you’re a doctor, when you arrive with patients who are much more complicated than elsewhere in France and you have three caregivers, it’s very complicated. »
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A shortage of medical personnel
Conditions of exercise which do not attract new doctors. They are the ones who say it, today they are doing the work that should be done by a team twice as large. The director of the hospital Thierry Acquier recalls that it was precisely the departure of a doctor which precipitated the closure of the unit. “ Me, if tomorrow I find five hospital psychiatric practitioners, I will reopen all the beds which are closed, he says. So the trend is the closure of beds in public hospitals, it has existed for some time, but it is essentially linked to the shortage of medical staff. It may not be satisfactory, but I don’t believe we will return to the golden age of 20 years ago. »
While the government is preparing to make billions of euros in savings, hospital unions fear economic fallout on an already fragile sector, which is attracting fewer and fewer vocations.
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