the essential
Established in the heart of the Lot for three years, a physiotherapist qualified abroad cannot obtain recognition of her diploma to open her practice. The region is mobilizing to support it.
For months, a new arrival has been preparing to settle in as a physiotherapist in the north-east of the department. After 16 years of expatriation, Catherine Le Gourvenec-Gleize-Bourras chose this little corner of the Lot with her family to settle down and change her life. The plan of this Frenchwoman returning home was to live in the countryside and develop her professional activity there. But she quickly became disillusioned. “We bought a house in Gorses, in an area that is very underserved in terms of healthcare. But my diploma obtained in New Zealand is not recognized in France, whereas it is in Germany, in Italy… The The only thing I was offered was to complete an equivalence by repeating three years of study. This was not possible. I have two little girls, aged 5 and 11 at the time. left for a year in Belgium to complete a master’s degree in physiotherapy and rehabilitation. A difficult time for her, far from her children and without any income. “It was complicated but I managed to graduate in January of this year.” The practitioner then thinks that she will finally be able to open her office in the spring. She set up premises in the town of Montet-et-Bouxal which she equipped by purchasing equipment for nearly €20,000 and even began work on renovating a barn next to her house.
The weeks pass and despite the letters sent and the steps taken, the precious sesame of recognition of one’s diploma, essential to practice, has still not arrived. “It’s a literally ludicrous situation. The problem is that recognition is not nationalized and depends on the regions. In the Grand Est, recognition takes a month… I have 70 medical prescriptions in my hands, many patients have been waiting for me for more than two years and I can’t do anything. It’s incomprehensible.
A petition launched by residents and supported by elected officials
However, in the region, Catherine Le Gourvenec-Gleize-Bourras made her mark and made herself known as a self-employed posturologist masseuse and also by giving pilates classes. “She does a lot of good. I have gone to see her several times and I will go back” says Claudine Rigal, mayor of Gorses who would like to see the situation evolve quickly. “She is willing and competent. She has already practiced, I don’t understand why it has taken so long. It’s terrible: there is a lack of health professionals here, she has trained but it still remains complicated.” Like her, the mayor of Montet-et-Bouxal does not hide his concern. “It’s a real problem. She invested in equipment, and she finds herself without professional activity, without resources.” The subject was raised in municipal council and Stéphane Leprettre decided to contact the prefect of Lot and even the Regional Directorate of Economy, Employment, Labor and Solidarity to try to find a solution. The president of Grand Figeac, Vincent Labarthe was also alerted. “I don’t understand how we can find ourselves in such a situation. I have the same problem with two doctors, a Ukrainian and a Lebanese who have already worked in France in a hospital environment but who do not have the right to join the intercommunal health center.
At the initiative of residents, a petition in favor of the installation of the physiotherapist has just been launched in businesses around Gorses and Montet-et-Bouxal. Catherine Le Gourvenec-Gleize-Bourras is touched by the numerous supports she receives but admits her dismay. “I only have my anger to move forward, it’s desperate.”
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