Illustration of a resuscitation unit at the Pellegrin hospital in Bordeaux.

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UGO AMEZ / SIPA

  • A deterioration in the health situation is expected in New Aquitaine in the coming weeks, given the increase in the number of hospitalizations.

  • The intensive care units are not yet overwhelmed but expect to be very soon.

  • The ARS believes that the behavior of residents in November will be decisive for the Christmas period.

It's a bit of a calm before the storm.

The Covid-19 epidemic, better contained in Nouvelle-Aquitaine than in other regions in recent weeks, could gain ground soon.

“Even if the intensive care units are not saturated, there is a sharp increase in hospitalizations in conventional medicine, explains Benoît Ellebode, Director General of ARS Nouvelle-Aquitaine on Monday.

The impact, now well known, will take place in about two weeks and at that point our healthcare system will be under heavy strain ”.

While this weekend, the Pyrénées-Atlantiques and Haute-Vienne joined the departments placed under curfew, the director of the ARS believes that "we will not escape a second wave which is beginning to emerge" .

The incidence rates are increasing very markedly in certain other departments as well, such as Dordogne, Deux-Sèvres and Vienne.

In Bordeaux, the incidence rate is high but stable and the increase is starting to be significant.

“We shifted things, but it happens everywhere, including in Bordeaux,” he points out.

The situation for Christmas is playing out in the coming weeks

The message of the health authority to the population, hailed for its discipline in terms of barrier gestures since the start of the epidemic, remains the same, to spare regional hospital services as much as possible.

Without being able to contain the virus, the objective of the health authorities remains to spread the consequences of the Covid-19 epidemic over time.

“The efforts made in November will determine the situation we will have at Christmas,” points out Benoît Ellebode.

In New Aquitaine, there are 535 intensive care beds and it is possible to mobilize 150 additional beds in the coming weeks, by deprogramming operations.

Friday and Monday, 16 patients from Rhône-Alpes Auvergne, were taken care of in neo-aquitan intensive care units.

"Today we are not worried about the resuscitation capacities in New Aquitaine but the experience of other regions shows us that filling can be done very quickly", clarifies the director of the ARS.

Transfers of patients from other regions will surely no longer be sustainable fast enough.

“In a week, this may not be possible without hampering our own resuscitation capacities,” he adds.

We will see according to the indicators but we observe that the hospitalization rate is increasing very significantly ”.

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26% of clusters identified in the social bubble

In Nouvelle-Aquitaine, 28% of the identified clusters emerged in schools and early childhood, 20% in nursing homes, 15% in companies and 26% during social activities (private sphere, sport, etc. ) A regional platform run by 160 medical students called 228,000 people who tested positive and their contact cases since the start of the epidemic.

They encourage them to isolate themselves and can provide support when needed (carrying meals for example).

  • Curfew

  • epidemic

  • Society

  • Covid 19

  • Aquitaine

  • Bordeaux