Faced with a quick spread of the Omicron Variant, the island faces unprecedented hospital pressure and reflects on a hardening of restriction measurements.
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More than 31,000 new cases in a week between 8 and 14 January (including 27 deaths), an average of 4,500 contaminations per day – two-thirds caused by the Omicron Variant – a record number of patients hospitalized. The meeting had never known such numbers since the beginning of the health crisis. On the weekend of January 15th and 16th was a “emergency hell”, testifies to a doctor.
While a decline in the epidemic seems to be drawn in some metropolitan areas and that the Prime Minister Jean Castex, disclosed, on Thursday, January 20, his calendar of lifting the restrictions of sanitary measures, the island of the Meeting is experiencing a “very violent acceleration” of viral traffic, notes Dr. Philippe Ocidant, Director of Crisis Medicine at the University Hospital (CHU) of the Reunion and Head of Neuroreanimation Department in Saint-Pierre. Faced with a wave of unpublished magnitude, the directors of the hospital establishments Reunion – The CHU of Saint-Denis and Saint-Pierre, the Hospital Center West Meeting (Chor) in Saint-Paul and the Hospital Group is a meeting (Gher) in Saint -Benoît – triggered, Wednesday, the white plan, which allows to mobilize personnel on leave or to use the sanitary reserve.
“This is a decision that has been delayed as much as possible and is now indispensable, observes Lionel Calenge, director of CHU and Ghers. We went to the end of what we could do. New means are needed to ensure continuity of care. “The occupation rates of hospitals in medicine and resuscitation regularly reach 90% for more than a week. These services remain in great voltage despite the increase in their home capacities, with a total of 108 resuscitation beds for 860,000 inhabitants. Due to the insularity of the meeting and its distance with the metropolis (eleven aircraft), the transfer of patients to other regions remains a very difficult solution to implement.
Metropolitan reinforcements
To support the new influx of CIVID-19 patients, half of the CHU operating blocks have already been closed. This leads to the deprogramming of nearly 500 surgical procedures per week, highlights the management of CHU. “We have many more patients and fewer staff”, also notes the dark doctor. Epidemic outbreak reaches 3% of CHU caregivers. “If it continues on this momentum, we will no longer be able to maintain enough open beds,” worries Lionel Calenge, stressing that staff have already “demonstrates, since the beginning of the pandemic, dedication and solidarity.”
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