The departmental council and the Regional Health Agency brought together the directors of the 26 nursing homes in Lozère to take stock and seek solutions to the difficulties encountered by establishments at the national level.
85% of Lozère nursing homes are in the red financially. Out of twenty-six accommodation establishments for dependent elderly people, which offer a total of 1,595 places, only four are surplus to requirements. In total, the cumulative deficit amounts to €3.80 million, out of €70 million in resources.
The impact of inflation
“We are facing an emergency. Almost all establishments are in deficit. And this deficit is not explained by poor management, but by high inflation“, asks Laurent Suau, president of the departmental council.
Also, the deficit worsened by one million euros between 2022 and 2023. The different parties underline the strong support provided by the Department in recent years. But this was not enough given the economic situation. Victor Lallemant, president in Lozère of the association of establishment directors (Fnadepa) and director of the Collet-de-Dèze nursing home, notes: “Establishments have been impacted by the increase in the cost of energy, the cost of water, the cost of food.”
Emergency help
To respond to the emergency, the departmental council will put one million euros to the vote during the meeting on November 26. “The proposal for this exceptional aid is obviously very well received by all nursing home directors,” recognizes Victor Lallemant. But beyond, “it is the system which is running out of steam in terms of operation and financing. It is a system that needs to be reviewed, and this must be done at the state level; the public authorities are alerted.“
A lasting solution “is not easy to find, unless the state and families put their hands in their pockets“, loves Laurent Suau.”The real question is who should pay. The answer is multipleconfirms Xavier Marette, departmental director of the ARS in Lozère. There is obviously the State, and the State already supports the establishments today. There are obviously also the supervisory authorities, the departmental council, and I welcome the initiative to provide one million in exceptional aid. And we have to ask ourselves the question of families.“
The question of price
In Lozère, nursing homes are among the cheapest in France. The overall average price paid by the resident is €66 per day. While the care of the resident costs double. For comparison, the monthly price is on average €1,870 in Lozère, compared to €2,560 in Haute-Garonne. This is explained by the absence of lucrative private nursing homes in Lozère, lower real estate costs, but also a desire to keep prices low for many years.
“We can't afford it anymore, warns Victor Lallemant. The question is quite simply the sustainability of establishments, in the short term for some, and in the medium term for others.” “If we let these deficits go, care will suffer”warns Laurent Suau.
The pricing issue was therefore addressed during this meeting. Families should expect their bills to increase in the future. “What we owe to our elders has a price“, slips Laurent Suau.
We need caregivers
Especially since nursing homes have other challenges to overcome, in particular investments to make. If we return to nursing homes later and later, we become more and more dependent. This requires a suitable environment. And establishments will also have to find staff. “We need caregivers, proclaims Victor Lallemant. There are great things to do in nursing homes!” We will therefore have to work on the attractiveness of these professions.
And on the image of the establishments: “I would like older people to say to themselves “Oh hey, if I could enter a nursing home, that would be great!”, confides Victor Lallemant. People rarely come home happily, and in the end, they feel good there.”he notes.
Midi Libre – STEPHANIE BOULOIR
