It is among the most fragile that it is most dangerous. While stage 2 of the epidemic was triggered to stop the spread of Covid-19 in France, the Minister of Health repeats it: if it causes mild forms in the vast majority of patients, beware of elderly patients , already weakened by other pathologies.
Among the four deaths, there is an 81-year-old man in Paris, an 89-year-old woman in the Oise and since Tuesday another 92-year-old in the Morbihan. In Oise, considered the main epidemic focus in France, five retirees have already tested positive at the Crépy-en-Valois hospital, a geriatric-oriented establishment. And more than 30 present symptoms of acute respiratory infection, without it yet being known if it is linked to the coronavirus.
Why does the Covid-19 hit the over 80s more violently? "When you are elderly and you have several pathologies, such as diabetes, hypertension, an external attack is enough for the sick organ to decompensate, explains Galdric Orvoen, doctor-geriatrician at the hospital Broca, in Paris. For example, if you already have heart failure, the heart contracts less well, the arteries are calcified. Faced with an infection, the heart will be more stressed and this increases the risk of death. "
The elderly, a fragile public
This is why the health authorities invite to be extra vigilant in order to protect our seniors. Retirement homes, geriatric services, Ministry of Health… The objective is to unite around this fragile public. "The risk does not come from the inside but from the outside as for the flu or the gastrointestinal", specifies Benoît Desjouis, director of the Ehpad of the Parc des Mauves, near Orléans (Loiret).
In a tweet to the President of the Republic, Nadège Lefebvre, President (LR) of the departmental council of Oise, alerted the authorities on Wednesday to the "critical situation" in his department. To date, the community supports around 5,000 isolated elderly people who use home help services. Household, toilet, meal ... "How to ensure continuity? She asked, taking the case of Crépy-en-Valois, a town frequented by two of the four patients who succumbed to the virus.
“One of the associations which works with isolated people in this sector has 40 employees, details the elected representative. This Tuesday, 26 are in the fortnight and the question arises for four others ... Some having been in contact with the woman who died this weekend. Who to take over from the beneficiaries? How to control the spread of the virus through this? "To protect themselves, elderly people refuse to welcome caregivers in their homes," continues Nadège Lefebvre. We will have to make sure that there is a family relay… ”
Exchange by Skype
Health professionals, used to dealing with other viruses, are already applying barrier measures, especially during this flu season. "It's in our culture," says Benoît Desjouis. In addition to the new recommendations from the General Directorate of Health, we must also reassure residents of retirement homes. "Their concern is legitimate," says Sonia Camay, a doctor in a geriatrics department of a Loire-Atlantique hospital. They want to know if there are cases of Covid-19 hospitalized in the area, if the virus is near them. The questions become more pressing "when we make the visits after the TV news," notes the doctor.
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In this context, relatives are invited to limit their travel. Are our seniors not at risk of suffering even more from isolation? “It's true that social ties are very important for their morale. But it is punctual, it is not a question of saying Do not come for a year. And then some have tablets and can exchange by Skype, "reassures Galdric Orvoen, doctor-geriatrician.
