A single mother of twins just under 3 years old, Jennifer, a liberal nurse in Nogent-sur-Marne (Val-de-Marne), did not count her hours during the health crisis. "We all mobilized without knowing if we would be paid or how much we would be paid," she announced immediately.
When the Covid-19 ambulatory center in Nogent (Val-de-Marne) opened at the end of March, in a gymnasium previously used for dance lessons, it brought together a dozen nurses to support the doctors in their work with the sick.
"Many refused, out of fear of the virus," she recalls. But in 72 hours, we were ready. It's amazing that 3 months later, we still haven't been paid a penny. However, there is a contract. I can understand that there is a little delay. But I still had to pay without waiting for the nanny and the nursery. And it has not escaped anyone's attention that shopping now costs more than before. ”
Jennifer also thought exclusively to manage coordination on a voluntary basis. "But given the work that it required, we decided to give him part of our remuneration, before the ARS also regularizes his situation and does not count it with us," said another caregiver.
"We sometimes put our private lives on hold to help"
Standing at 5.30 a.m. to start his tour at 6.30 a.m., the forty-something woman connects her liberal appointments and the management of the centre's staff, with the daily schedule, constantly upset by the nurses, also forced to continue their tour with their usual patients .
Sometimes she replaces one of her sisters at short notice and performs an extra shift. "I had to fully charge my phone twice in the day so that it lasted until the end, around 11 pm," says the forty-something man, one of the colleagues in the center was affected by the disease.
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According to the contract with the ARS, the nurses at the Covid-19 center in Nogent are paid 270 euros for a three-hour shift. "For some, it represents 8000 euros and they really need it," says Jennifer, who claims for her part to an even higher sum because she has carried out more than forty vacations.
“You have to see that, aside from that, we took fewer people on our Liberal tours. We were also less in demand because people were afraid to see us. We have sometimes put our private lives on hold to help. It's frankly not cool. Same problem for the doctors who work in these centers.
"Payments have accelerated since June" promises the ARS
A question of time, replies the ARS. "Specific agreements have been drawn up urgently for nearly 200 Covid ambulatory centers in Ile-de-France, 150 of which still have a Covid consultation open," explains the body. The payment procedure for these professionals requires the sending of activity reports by the centers and, currently, these documents have not yet reached us all. "
"However, to date, more than half of the professionals working in these centers have already been paid by the ARS and, thanks to the mobilization of all the teams, payments have accelerated since the beginning of June", reassures l 'instance. The total amount of the invoice will not be evaluated before the end of the crisis.
"Some doctors have had no income for 2 months"
Caregivers at Covid centers are not the only ones concerned. In private hospitals, some doctors are also bitter. "We are well aware of passing for the wealthy but some of us are in difficulty," says a Parisian resuscitator. Their usual activity was cut short by the health crisis and they had no income for two months. We gave a helping hand by providing 12-hour guards as backup and for the moment, we haven't touched anything. "
"Compared to hospital workers who have their salary, the guards and the bonus for the Covid effort, the liberals have none of that," confirms Dr. Pierre Lanot, secretary general of the union of anesthetists resuscitators of France. With the help of the ARS who supported us well, we obtained compensation for those who participated in the Covid effort. It is very good, it is validated, but after it must be put in place and it will be a bit long because in Ile-de-France, 60 to 70 establishments are concerned. "
“Not everyone has been paid, but I don't think that it must be seen as a bad will on the part of the ARS, it is a fairly complex and unprecedented mechanism to set up. Before mid-July, 100% of cases should be resolved, and we remain attentive to the situation, "also reassures Alexandre Grenier, director of URPS, regional union of health professionals, liberal doctors from Ile-de-France .
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