Yasmina Kattou (special correspondent in Gardanne)//Photo credits: VALENTIN BELLEVILLE / HANS LUCAS / HANS LUCAS VIA AFP 7:36 a.m., March 11, 2024

In France, 21 departments still lack palliative care units.

While Emmanuel Macron has positioned himself for "assisted dying" which should allow certain patients, under "strict conditions", to receive a "lethal substance", Europe 1 went to Gardanne within the structure The House which welcomes and takes care of people at the end of their lives.

After long months of reflection and several postponements, Emmanuel Macron unveiled on Sunday his "French end-of-life model": an "aid in dying" which should allow certain patients, under "strict conditions", to receive " lethal substance.

In an interview published by

La Croix

and

Libération

, the head of state affirms that the government's bill will be presented in April to the Council of Ministers for examination at first reading in the National Assembly in May, before the European elections of June.

The text will also include measures to strengthen palliative care, but 21 departments still do not.

While two thirds of French people do not have access to this end-of-life care, structures like La Maison have emerged over the past 30 years.

In Gardanne, near Aix-en-Provence, this timeless place celebrates life when death is very close. 

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The ambiguities of Emmanuel Macron

Living with daylight

Behind the ocher-colored walls of the villa, no white coat or number on the doors of the 24 rooms of La Maison, all built around a patio in the shade of palm trees, like in a Moroccan riad.

This is a wish of Jean-Marc La Piana, founder of La Maison: "What was important for us is to live with daylight and not with neon lights", he explains on the microphone of Europe 1 .

In the middle of the patio, a small fountain sits: “It soothes. At night, it’s something that is very appreciated,” he explains.

“Enjoy what remains to live”

A few steps from the patio, a living room with sofa and fireplace, a cocoon where residents can read, listen to their favorite music or cuddle Brooklyn, the residence's cat.

The House is a place of care, but above all a place of life where the last days are gentler for the sick and their loved ones. 

"My mother, who suffers from terminal cancer, was afraid of being in the state she is in today. She had even considered going to Switzerland. When I see her this morning, she is calm, so she don't talk about that anymore. She's calm," explains a man whose mother is a resident at La Maison.

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End of life: “We will have to legislate with trembling hands but I have no difficulty with this subject”, assures Catherine Vautrin

“There for example, Grandma is going to have a bath and I know that it will make her very happy with the little trickle of life that remains for her. Here, we take advantage of what remains to live, so that it is as beautiful as possible” , concludes another close friend of a member of La Maison.