The healthcare system in France is often described as one of the most efficient in the world. But the proud rooster could soon put these “coricoricos” on the mute, especially since he already doesn’t have much of a voice. “After the Covid crisis which revealed the discomfort of the hospital, nothing is resolved”, insists Camille de Froment, editor-in-chief of the evening Health in France: a state of emergency?near 20 Minutes.
With this documentary, followed by a debate, the public service intends to put the breathlessness of the French health system back at the center of concerns. The challenge concerns both the population and professionals in the sector.
Michel Cymes and Léa Salamé were chosen to host this meeting, two months after a similar initiative on ecology. “We went from semi-emergency for years to vital emergency because the situation in France is catastrophic”, warns the doctor joined by 20 Minutes. He evokes a “shameful” situation for France because “it is one of the richest countries in the world whose medicine is renowned”.
System D
The 85-minute documentary will take stock of the country’s health situation thanks to sequences filmed in Le Mans, Amiens, Lille, Nevers, Chaudes-Aigues in Cantal, Mantes-la-Jolie, Montreuil or again in Clermont-Ferrand. Transport of doctors by plane, recourse to foreign doctors… So many examples which testify to the reality but above all to the urgency for the authorities to act on the health front.
“The quality of doctors and nursing staff is exceptional in our country,” reassures Michel Cymes. However, the numbers are lacking and give rise to a striking contrast. “We walk on the head, he continues. If it takes at least three months to have an appointment and be able to be treated, it’s not much use. »
Medical deserts, breathlessness of caregivers, drop in vocations… The list of obstacles imposed on the health system each year continues to grow. Observers of this gradual disintegration are the teams of the health magazine of France 5 who ensured the image of the general malaise of the sector. “Often it’s the D system that takes over. There are plenty of good solutions but for the moment the solutions come from the bottom, not from the top”, notes Camille de Froment.
The consequences of a “poor policy”
Michel Cymes will ensure the scientific view alongside the political expertise of Léa Salamé. He believes that the situation is due to “the stupid policy of closed number and limitation of physicians applied for years”. Angry, he believes that France is now paying for all the policies put in place in the early 1980s.
“The authorities have not been able to anticipate the increase and the aging of the population. But hospitals are not balloons in which we can blow when the population increases, ”warns Michel Cymes. To make the authorities face up to their responsibilities, the documentary will be followed by a 70-minute debate in the presence of the Minister of Health, François Braun. “I have things to tell him, warns the ENT doctor. “It is immediately that we must act, it is not at the next presidential election or the next Minister of Health. That’s why we talk about urgency. »
Camille de Froment confirms that the situation has never been so alarming. “Today, there are people who die in the emergency room because they were not well taken care of, because they waited for hours, because they were forgotten behind a screen… It’s a reality. »
“We have to move to make it better”
Relegated to the background after the Covid-19 crisis; health remains one of the major concerns of French men and women. And France Télévisions wants to prove it with this thematic evening.
“We can draw up an inventory, self-flagellate for a long time, now we have to say OK, we weren’t far-sighted enough, we didn’t anticipate enough, now we have to move to make things better” , concludes Michel Cymes. It remains to be seen whether the program will guarantee caregivers a sufficiently effective dressing for a better future.