Posted Jan 6, 2023, 6:00 AM
Faced with the persistent difficulties of the hospital and pressed by liberal professionals to improve their incomes and their working conditions, the executive promises to “give a course to caregivers”. Emmanuel Macron will go this Friday to a hospital in the Paris region to present his wishes “to the actors of health”, a first since he is president. “We need to get out of crisis management which has somehow become the dominant mode of operation of the health sector”, we explain at the Elysée.
The presidency assures that the government will unveil “very concrete measures with precise and close review clauses to ensure their execution”. Not hesitating to speak of a “breathless” health system, the executive has already promised to “rebuild” it within the framework of the National Council for Refoundation which is still in progress.
Unacceptable working conditions
The expectations of healthcare professionals are very high. After having had to withstand the successive waves of Covid, hospitals are undermined by staff shortages. On Wednesday, the FO Santé union, powerful in the hospital public service, filed a strike notice to “denounce the unacceptable working conditions” and obtain “a radical change in health policy”.
Thursday evening, the Order of Physicians as well as a dozen unions of liberal and hospital doctors published a joint press release to alert to “the extreme vulnerability of our health system”. While a majority of French people say they are struggling to access care, “hospital and liberal doctors are very worried about patients”, write the organizations which are not used to communicating all together.
Calls to strike
Earlier in the day, liberal doctors marched in Paris at the call of the Doctors for Tomorrow collective and several unions to demand an increase in income, via a doubling of the price of the basic consultation (from 25 to 50 euros) . Several strike calls have been launched in recent weeks while the Liberals are in the midst of a standoff with Medicare to negotiate, by the end of February, the agreement that binds them to Social Security and determine their income.
The government is open to their increase but intends to obtain in exchange commitments from professionals likely to facilitate access to care for the French. “I want us to be able to have a doctor at night, on weekends”, declared the Minister of Health, François Braun, this Thursday on France 2. The executive has so far rejected the idea of compelling the installation of doctors even if he intends to push general medicine students to go to medical deserts (during their fourth year of internship).
On the other hand, he wishes to encourage more strongly the sharing of tasks between health professionals, which irritates doctors. A majority bill along these lines is currently being drafted. “The competence of the doctor guarantees the quality and safety of the overall care of the patient”, retort the organizations of doctors in their press release on Thursday.