Faced with the flu epidemic, 87 French hospitals have triggered the “white plan”, a system which makes it possible to deprogram certain operations or to recall staff from leave, the Ministry of Health said on Friday. The French Minister of Labor, Health, Solidarity and Families, Catherine Vautrin, had mentioned a little earlier on CNews-Europe 1 a “hundred” hospital establishments having triggered this system, as of Thursday evening, facing to the influx of patients.
The winter flu epidemic, which usually lasts ten to twelve weeks, intensified at the beginning of January and causes hospitalizations at an “exceptionally high” level compared to previous seasons, Public Health France (SpF) observed on Wednesday.
The number of flu-related deaths, mainly among those over 65, has increased. To protect against this, the authorities regularly remind us that vaccination remains the most effective means, in particular against serious forms of influenza and Covid-19.
-It is recommended for people aged 65 and over, immunocompromised people, infants over six months old with comorbidities, pregnant women and residents of medico-social establishments.
On CNews-Europe 1, Catherine Vautrin called on “those who have not yet been vaccinated” to do so. “When we look at emergency room arrivals and in particular cases of complications, more than 70% of them are people who are not vaccinated and who are eligible people,” she underlined.
