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Their vocation is to take care of others.
This time, they joined the camp of the sick.
For the past two days, sick leave has been increasing in the emergency department of the Nantes University Hospital.
According to the establishment, 13 short-term absences of nurses and 13 of nursing assistants were recorded this Thursday in the middle of the day.
The CGT union even advanced more than 36 stops on Wednesday evening out of 78, or almost half of the workforce, as well as a third of the paramedical staff of the psychiatry department.
“
We decided to go see our treating physicians at the same time.
They arrested us for psychological and physical suffering
,” explains Georges*, 30, emergency room nurse, out of breath.
"
If so many people are on sick leave, it's not trivial
," continues his colleague Sébastien*, a nurse for 10 years who, for the first time, is thinking of leaving a profession he loves above all else.
Like him, his colleagues say they are exhausted and denounce working conditions that are deteriorating.
Since October, they have been on strike but must continue to work because assigned.
"
We can't make ourselves heard.
We have the impression of speaking in a vacuum
, ”denounces Denis *, in the same situation.
I am a caregiver, not an abuser
Sébastien, 35, nurse for 10 years, currently on sick leave
Listening to them, several demands intertwine.
In addition to the desire for more financial recognition, the caregivers are above all asking for additional staff and more beds to “
face the endless hours of waiting on a stretcher
”.
“
Once, I took care of a patient at 9 a.m. when he had arrived the day before at 2 p.m.
,” testifies Georges*.
Anaïs*, 24, remembers the image of an 88-year-old patient, who had waited 15 hours on a stretcher.
“
We can no longer see patients deteriorating before our eyes, it's unbearable.
I am a caregiver not an abuser
“, resumes Sébastien, who has seen the hospital decline for several years, and remembers having been cheered during the Covid and thanked during the management of the triple winter epidemic.
Once, Aline*, a nurse's aide, found herself managing 18 patients alone.
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Contacted, the management of the CHU says it is faced with an “
unprecedented
” situation,
“which is similar to a voluntary movement of absenteeism
”.
Specific organizational measures have therefore been put in place.
"
To date, business continuity is assured and no new bed closures are to be reported
."
On the other hand, according to the staff, certain services are closed, such as the waiting and diagnostic area.
Similarly, the casts were not done on Thursday.
Patients sent to the Confluent private hospital
To deal with this problem, some patients are sent to nearby establishments that have the capacity, such as Saint-Nazaire.
“
We welcome the standing flow, that is to say patients who do not require complete hospitalization after their visit to the emergency room
”, indicates the private hospital of Confluent, located in Nantes.
These are people who arrive on their own for fractures, for example.
“
We are seeing a much denser incoming flow than usual.
For the moment, we manage to absorb it but we are very vigilant because we are also in a fragile situation in terms of staff or downstream beds
”.
At the beginning of January, the
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“
They are patching up to avoid having human tragedies but continue to break up the public hospital.
They put patches only to avoid deaths on the stretchers
, ”denounces Olivier Terrien, secretary general of the CGT of the Nantes University Hospital, targeting the management, the ARS and the ministry.
According to him, “
a new step has been taken
” when “
it has been pulling for years
”.
The management of the CHU, for its part, “
recalls its desire to maintain a constructive social dialogue.
This is why it has taken the initiative to convene a Social Establishment Committee next week
”.
The CGT, which had requested such a meeting, indicates that this extraordinary social and economic committee will take place next Wednesday.
Work organization and absenteeism will be discussed.
*All names have been changed.
