Benjamin Peter (in Perpignan), edited by Solène Leroux
modified to
07:45, February 08, 2022
Faced with the lack of beds in the emergency room, the Perpignan hospital center took the decision to erect tents this Sunday to accommodate able-bodied patients. A decision that angered caregivers who denounce a lack of resources and decided to file a strike notice.
“Valid Emergencies.” This is what can be read on a sign that guides patients in front of one of the white tents deployed in front of the emergency department of the Perpignan Hospital Center. “On Friday, we realized that there were only three to five beds left to spend the weekend,” laments François Sanchez, the Force Ouvrière representative of the Perpignan Hospital Center. So the hospital management called on the firefighters of SDIS 66 on Sunday to install this device. A temporary solution, for 48 hours only, assures the management of the hospital which refuses to make further comments.
This is where patients who come by their own means are received and where patients are sorted. “We deported an emergency department under the tent,” notes Estelle, who has been a nurse in this department since 2013. “And in the emergency building we created a hospitalization department to compensate for a lack of beds in the departments. isn’t a permanent solution, they pitched the tents for 48 hours, what are we going to do in 72 hours? There still won’t be any beds! That’s not what we’re asking We ask for beds, but not in these conditions!”
“In spite of ourselves, we become abusive”
Patients thus find themselves hospitalized in the emergency department instead of joining specialized services. “These people must be taken care of too”, alarms François Sanchez. “While they should be taken care of in the downstream services, it is the emergency personnel who take them in addition to their normal activity. It is untenable!” Inside, the staff describe difficult working conditions with rooms hastily transformed into bedrooms. “We end up with examination boxes which are intended for a rapid flow and which become temporary hospitalization rooms”, laments Marine, also a nurse.
For her, this hospital center is not sized to accommodate so many people. “We end up with a flow of patients which is that of a university hospital when we are a regional hospital, we have neither the human resources nor the equipment to assume it every day”, adds she. “We come to apprehend our working days. Instead of wishing each other a good day, we wish each other good luck. And despite ourselves, we become abusive and that no longer corresponds to our values as caregivers.”
But for these hospital staff, this situation is not new. Already in 2019, they went on strike to demand more resources. “It’s a recurring problem,” notes François Sanchez. “It was difficult before, the Covid-19 has tired people even more and it will be even more difficult after.” A strike notice has been filed for Friday, many of these caregivers will follow it to ask for additional beds and staff even though they already know that they will be requisitioned by the hospital management.