INTERVIEW
As hospital services are increasingly put under pressure by the coronavirus epidemic, healthcare workers are expressing their anger at the lack of material and human resources. Patrick Pelloux, president of the Association of Emergency Physicians of France, guest of Europe 1 Saturday, describes in particular the dramatic situation in which certain hospitals in the east of the country find themselves. Above all, he reports his surprise as patients aged 40 or 50 arrive en masse in hospitals. "The patients are younger than we were told," he says.
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Previously described as a virus which is essentially dangerous for the elderly or those suffering from respiratory pathologies, covid-19 unfortunately seems to also attack younger individuals. "The findings within the profession, on the part of resuscitators and emergency room [...] is that we see a lot of people 40 years, 50 years." Their number would moreover have exceeded that of the elderly in many health establishments.
"Some of our activities have stopped"
The internal organization of hospitals is completely turned upside down by the arrival of patients suffering from the coronavirus. If the emergency doctor evokes "very disparate" situations across the country, he notes the shutdown of many services, such as accidentology. "Some of our activities have stopped."
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Patrick Pelloux also underlined the gravity of the situation in the East of France. At the Mulhouse hospital on Friday, 29 patients were intubated. "This is unprecedented! Usually, we intubate one patient a week."
Reaffirming its confidence in the action of the authorities, who are doing their best in "the current state of the health system", he calls for solidarity: "The game is not won. It is a real health and social battle . "