Through Charles Giovacchini
Published on
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“We all took a hit on the head! »Stunned after the announcement of the death, Wednesday, June 9 in the intensive care unit of a Paris hospital following a suicide attempt, of their emergency physician colleague, the caregivers of Pasteur hospital gathered on Friday at 2 p.m. in front of the establishment to pay tribute to Dr Amel Gharbi.
Under a banner hanging from the pediment of one of the buildings, green and white balloons in their hands, they gathered in silence, in palpable emotion, to recall the memory of an “excellent emergency physician, competent and always benevolent. -to his patients ”. And denounce in covert words the pressure exerted by the management since the acquisition of the establishment, in January 2018, by the Vivalto group.
“I hope that your death will reveal this situation”
Throat tight, several caregivers took the floor to paint a quick portrait of a practitioner “very invested in the establishment”. “An extremist of diagnosis as in life” who, according to one of them, had “sounded the alarm bell” on several occasions to point out “the lack of human and material resources”. “I hope that your death will reveal this situation” hoped the latter. It’s the case.
Subsequently, without hiding his anger, a doctor, still in shock, sent a straightforward message to management. “Our job must combine skills and kindness towards patients and we apply ourselves to this every day. We also need to be supported by a hierarchy which must be benevolent and grateful for all of us who strive to provide the best possible care for our patients. Amel, we will not forget your message ”.
Emergency room pressure
After a release of balloons and a round of applause, while the caregivers struggled to disperse, small voices rose in aside to denounce “contemptuous management” and untenable working conditions. Especially in emergencies where a single doctor is on duty “where it would take two to accommodate up to 160 patients per duty”.
Malaise in Bergouignan
The echo of the death of Amel Gharbi also echoed in the corridors of the Bergouignan clinic where, since the takeover by Vivalto in January 2020, caregivers have suffered “a very complicated context”. “Between the reorganization and the pandemic, we are living a very serious moment” explains a doctor from the establishment, referring to situations of burn-out, stoppages and resignations in series.
“In some departments, we put less staff, it exhausts people” testifies a nurse, regretting the “family atmosphere” of the clinic which, according to him, is gradually disappearing in favor of accounting logic. “They want to copy an industrial model on a health system, that does not work” deplores the latter.
Contacted, Francois Rouchette, the director of Pasteur and Bergouignan, did not wish to comment on the dysfunctions raised by the employees of the two establishments. “I do not enter into the controversy. Today my thoughts are in the direction of Amel’s family, his relatives and the hospital teams, ”the director was content to declare.
The Vivalto group, owner of the two private establishments, reacted to the death of Dr Amel Gharbi, emergency doctor at the private hospital Pasteur in Évreux, to express “the deep sadness and the deepest emotion” of the management and of all clinic staff, as well as the management of the Vivalto Santé Group and the entire medical community.
“Psychological support was immediately deployed within the Pasteur Clinic to support all the teams who expressed a need for it,” says the group’s press release. “The health crisis has hit hard, and continues to hit hard, our establishments and our teams, as well as the entire Vivalto Santé group. Our thoughts are with the family and loved ones of Dr Amel Gharbi ”.
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