The Covid-19 continues to saturate French hospital services, and in particular in Ile-de-France, where 62% of beds in intensive care units are occupied by patients affected by this disease.
As of October 22, there are 703 patients in intensive care in hospitals in Île-de-France, or about 60% of the region’s initial resuscitation capacities, which are 1,200 beds.
The director general of the ARS (Regional Health Agency of Île-de-France), Aurélien Rousseau, was concerned during the press conference of the Paris police prefect on October 5, about a rate of occupancy which should reach 50% “in the next fifteen days”. Sadly correct forecasts and figures which continue to increase.
For Aurélien Rousseau, the situation is alarming: 90% risk being reached at the end of October. The same goes for Martin Hirsch, director of the AP-HP (Public Assistance – Hospitals of Paris), who estimated at the beginning of October that “70 to 90%” of intensive care beds could be occupied by the end of the month.
A situation that also affects patients suffering from other pathologies
A situation which could prove to be catastrophic, in particular for patients suffering from other pathologies, because as Aurélien Rousseau declared “this means that we will have to go even further in the deprogramming of operations”.
In mainland France, the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region is the region with the highest occupancy rate for intensive care beds, with departments exceeding 80%. In this region “all planned surgical care, apart from the so-called outpatient surgery or cancer surgery […] were delayed, suspended, for a period of at least two weeks to leave room, ”said Minister of Health Olivier Véran this evening.
While the situation in France is deteriorating, Prime Minister Jean Castex announced that 54 departments and 1 overseas territory are, or will be, affected by the curfew imposed from 9 p.m. to 6 a.m.
