Accommodation establishments for dependent elderly people (Ehpad) have been particularly affected by the Covid-19 pandemic. In a new study from the Department of Research, Studies, Evaluation and Statistics (Drees) published on July 2, we learn that in 2020, three quarters of nursing homes had at least one resident affected by the coronavirus, and one establishment in five experienced a so-called “critical” episode, during which at least 10 residents or 10% of all residents died.
A total of 224,500 residents (i.e. 38% of all residents) were infected and 5% died during the year, i.e. 29,300 deaths.
2 epidemic waves in spring and autumn
“The dynamics of the epidemic in nursing homes is similar to that observed in the general population, with a first peak in March-April 2020 followed by a second in October-November 2020” underline the researchers.
>> The first epidemic wave was concentrated in Île-de-France, in the Grand-Est and Hauts-de-France, with more than 55% of nursing homes having reported a case among their residents. During this period, 16% of establishments experienced a severe episode (more than 30 residents or more than a third of residents affected). In contrast, regions such as New Aquitaine, Occitanie or Brittany have counted very few establishments affected and deaths.
>> The second wave affected more widely the establishments of the whole territory and caused twice as many contaminations as the first. 54% of nursing homes have declared at least one case of Covid-19 among their residents and 25% have experienced severe episodes. The Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes and Provence-Alpes-Côte-d’Azur regions were the most affected, with 73% and 66% of their nursing homes respectively having experienced an episode during the second wave.
“The number of residents affected by the second wave is almost twice that of the first: 144,400 against 80,100. However, the number of deceased residents is almost identical (just under 15,000 people), no doubt thanks to better detection of asymptomatic cases due to tests or better management of severe forms of the disease” explains the Drees.
What has been happening in nursing homes since the start of 2021?
Between mid-December 2020 and February 2021 (date of finalization of this Dress survey), a quarter of nursing homes counted a new episode of contamination of one of their residents by Covid-19. This represents 53,600 new cases and 4,800 deceased residents, in 2 and a half months. Vaccination of residents began at the end of 2020 and at the end of February, 4 out of 5 residents had received their first dose, and 1 out of 2 had received both doses.
Gradually, the contaminations have decreased and there have been less than 100 new episodes per week since the beginning of May 2021.
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