Covid-19 deaths in nursing homes: the Korian group in turmoil

The Covid-19 hit hard among the elderly. According to the latest assessment published this Sunday evening by Santé publique France, 8,654 people housed in establishments such as retirement homes have died from contamination, or nearly 4 out of 10 victims (38%). Among them, 606 died in one of the 308 accommodation establishments for dependent persons (Ehpad) of the Korian group.

A group with high-end rates plunged into turmoil since a dozen families of deceased residents have filed complaints, including eight on the only establishment La Riviera, in Mougins (Alpes-Maritimes) where the toll is particularly heavy: 37 deaths out of 109 residents.

The prosecutor of Grasse has also opened a preliminary investigation on April 3 for "manslaughter" and "failure to assist people in danger". On this Provencal aspect, the Korian group has turned against the prefect of Grasse, who, in Nice-Matin on April 3 did not mince words: “Barrier measures have not been taken. There was a delay in dealing with the situation. Even the mayor of Mougins went there suddenly, bringing a civil action alongside the prosecution.

But Mougins is not an isolated case, in other nursing homes in the group there are dozens of victims: 24 deaths in Bures-sur-Yvette (Essonne), 25 in Noisy-le-Grand (Seine-Saint-Denis) … And again these are the people who died in the nursing home. Added to this are the deaths in the hospital and the many infected people who escaped. Enough to raise doubts about the effectiveness of the system put in place by the group, the European leader in retirement homes, listed on the stock market, which includes among its shareholders, Prédica, a subsidiary of Crédit Agricole, and the provident group Malakoff-Médéric -Humanis.

"A group that only wants to make money"

"It is a public health scandal within the health crisis", does not hesitate to say Me Fabien Arakelian who defends seven families: four in Mougins, two in Clamart and one in Chaville (Hauts-de-Seine). The lawyer at the Paris bar lists "multiple negligence: absence of preventive measures, insufficiency of masks and gels, late tests, concealment of the patients' state of health, absence of communication ..." before denouncing "a group which is just trying to make money ”.

A reference to the 136 million euros in profits made by the group in 2019 and the annual salary of 1 million euros gross paid to the general manager, Sophie Boissard, who arrived in 2016, and who, as of 2017, received 62,300 group free shares, with a current value of 1.7 million euros.

A director who refutes any accusation, claiming to have reacted each time faster than the public authorities and who announces today, "out of solidarity", reduce by 25% all of her income for 2020 and the payment of a bonus 1000 euros to staff. A breath of fresh air for the 24,000 low-paid employees - "1,600 euros net after 16 years of service", according to a nursing assistant - probably explaining a staff turnover of 18% per year.

"At one point it was a mess"

"The situation is starting to improve against the Covid, and we don't say that things are bad everywhere," concedes CGT delegate from Korian, Albert Papadacci. But at one point it was a mess. The equipment arrived during the week of March 24 to 30, while the confinement of the elderly began on March 15, ”he said. According to a colleague from Ehpad du Havre (Seine-Maritime), “at one point, my superior asked me to make masks out of fabrics, because we no longer had any. They arrived two days later. Colleagues from other centers also experienced ruptures. "

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As for the respect of barrier gestures, it gave rise on March 21 to an alert email sent by the granddaughter of a resident of the Bel-Air nursing home, in Clamart (Hauts-de-Seine), to the direction. Olivia Mokiejewski was astonished: "Yesterday, a presenter organized a video call with my grandmother, he sat next to her, talking to her barely 30 cm and without any protection".

Hard work for Laurent Berger

But alongside, an extremely rare occurrence, two house unions, Unsa, the majority, and the CFDT published a joint press release on April 23 to say "We're lying to you!" ", And take the defense of a direction which would have perfectly anticipated the needs for protection:" We can no longer accept this permanent doubt ", loose the six elected staff who even launched a petition on change.org. And this Sunday, it is the boss of the CFDT himself who came up in support of Korian at the microphone of radio-J: "Recent press articles show a form of caricature and relentlessness around this group", said Laurent Berger who stressed the need to better take into account dependence in our country.

For its part, the Ile-de-France regional health agency stresses that the group has many deaths in this region, a recognized cluster, where "almost no Ehpad was spared", just like in the Grand Est .

So, has Korian underestimated the risk for its residents, who are essentially fragile, or has it, as its general manager claims, mobilized sufficient resources? It will take several months to allow the investigations carried out to provide precise answers.