This Tuesday March 31, in the early afternoon, Philippe Juvin was a tired but satisfied man. The mayor (LR) of La Garenne-Colombes (Hauts-de-Seine), also head of emergency at the Georges-Pompidou hospital in Paris, managed to organize a first large-scale screening for coronavirus in an Ehpad of his common.
“It was complicated, complex to set up, but we did it! ", Welcomes those who campaign for a generalization of tests in accommodation establishments for dependent elderly people. That the elected official is a well-known doctor - and in the media - has, by his own admission, "facilitated the process". “When I say something in the medical field, I am credible. People tend to trust me. It helped, of course, ”he says.
"Now we have to wait for the results"
“These screenings on a large number of people are essential. We need flawless organization and logistics and also be able to rely on an efficient team, ”insists Philippe Juvin. Two weeks after the start of confinement, everything was ready for the operation of La Garenne, in the retirement home La Tournelle: “We had the voluntary laboratory, high-performance professionals and enough tests available. Now, wait for the results and see, depending on the number of positive cases, how to reorganize the operation of the Ehpad. "
If it is the first of its type in the region and one of the first in France, screening for La Garenne should prove successful. Swapping his doctor's cap for that of the mayor, Philippe Juvin reports that "several mayors and several regional presidents" have "contacted" him. "Today, my hope is that this operation has given others the desire to do the same. "
