“It is unacceptable that those who care for us are attacked. This should not be a brake on the desire of some to get involved… The Minister Delegate in charge of Health Professions, Agnès Firmin-Le Bodo, presented this Friday a plan of 42 measures to better protect caregivers.
It includes the strengthening of criminal sanctions, the development of alert systems, a poster campaign and the training of professionals.
“30,000 acts of violence” annually in health establishments
Some “30,000 acts of violence” annually are counted in health establishments and 1,200 were recorded by the Order of Physicians in 2022, “underestimated” figures because professionals rarely report violence, she said. deplored. A survey by the Order of Nurses indicates that “more than 60% say they have already been attacked”.
The result of “collective work” with the Ministries of Justice, Civil Service and Solidarity, this plan includes “three main axes”: prevention, securing the operating environment, support for victims.
“Our fellow citizens must understand that zero tolerance will be required” for physical and verbal attacks, and a poster campaign will be organized from November, declared the minister.
“Reinforced” criminal sanctions, the “crime of created contempt”
Criminal sanctions will be “reinforced”, with the creation of an “offense of contempt” against liberal professionals – which already exists for hospital staff – or the new possibility, for an establishment director, of joining the officer’s complaint.
The executive also wants to encourage people to report and file a complaint, and improve support for victims, for example by “systematizing” the taking of complaints in the establishment or in the office.
Caregivers will be trained “in the management of aggression”, to be able “in advance, to detect and prevent escalating aggression”, as part of ongoing and initial training. The government also aims to train 150,000 professionals in the “mental health first aid certificate” in 2025.