New Medical Offers Bring Hope to Medical Desert of Nivernais

Since February, an air link has allowed doctors from Dijon to consult in Nevers every week. 48 different doctors came through this. And since April 3, SOS doctors has returned to Nevers, on the initiative of practitioners from the Côte-d’Or branch.

The mobilization of local elected officials and practitioners from Nivernais and Burgundy has paid off in expanding the offer in the medical desert of Nivernais. These arrivals arouse medical emulation.

Thursday April 27, during a press conference dedicated to the recent arrival of these new medical offers, Denis Thuriot, president of Nevers agglomeration, announced that he had been contacted, a few hours earlier, by a dermatologist wishing to settle in Nevers . To the hospital ? At the clinic ? We do not know yet.

The dermatologist comes to discuss Tuesday, May 2

“We are in talks with her,” he tells us aside. “She is coming to discuss Tuesday May 2 with us, so it is a good sign. People are showing up more and more since the arrival of the Flying Doctors“, he rejoices.

Dr. Basile Khouri, elected to the city of Nevers and head of the hospital’s orthopedics-traumatology department, is satisfied to have been able to achieve this result: these two offers put in place in a few months. “Even in the face of difficulty, common sense and solidarity lead to sometimes unexpected solutions”.

SOS Médecins opened its doors in Nevers: how does it work?

There was a need, it is obvious, as shown by Dr. Redda Zerkaoui, of SOS doctors 21. “Here, we are in the hard: we have people who no longer have a doctor.” Some also come because they can’t get an appointment quickly with their doctor.

“Encourage young people to take over”

Since the opening of SOS doctors in Nevers, from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m., the doctor on duty receives forty to forty-five patients a day. But he recalls that his presence and that of his colleagues is only temporary.

“The goal is not to settle here. But to perpetuate, to encourage young people to take over”. That’s the challenge. Dr. Romain Thévenoud, on the initiative of the return of SOS doctors to Nevers, succeeded in rallying to his cause Sylvain Vereycken–Lazou, a medical intern in Nièvre and active in the association of young general practitioners in Burgundy. He will be able to be detached from his boarding school to come and help us on Monday mornings, Fridays and Saturdays.

“The project is not simply to bring in doctors from Dijon, but also to involve interns with a replacement license”, recalls Sylvie Collin, assistant to the territorial director of Nièvre of the regional health agency. According to her, they will be able to benefit from remuneration and “this can help them to settle in the territory”.

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The president of the departmental council of the order of doctors, Dr Thierry Lemoine, is satisfied with the weight lifted by his colleagues from Côte-d’Or, but that will not be enough, according to him.

“Thank you, dear colleagues of SOS doctors. I don’t know if you had estimated the quantity, the tsunami of patients that it represented. It relieves the population and general practitioners: it’s important”, he reacts.

“But the future is not very bright,” he warns. “More than 50% of Nivernais general practitioners are over 60 years old. Within five years, there will be many departures”.

“Prime the pump”

For him, SOS doctors can above all “prime the pump”. The director of the hospital also draws up an unsatisfactory inventory of the medical desert of Nivernais. Especially since SOS doctors only works, for the moment, during the day (9 a.m. to 8 p.m.), from Monday noon to Thursday noon, with only one doctor at a time and a break during school holidays. “I remain optimistic, Mr. President, launches Dr. Khouri, addressing the president of the Departmental Council of the order. We will get there!”

The president of the agglomeration is aware that “there is not one solution, but a combination of solutions”. To be found locally, according to him.

Jenny Pierre