The Agir pour Dijon group published a press release this Friday, January 17, 2025, denouncing the municipality’s inaction in the face of the crisis affecting the city’s EHPADs. Since February 2024, this opposition group has been warning of serious dysfunctions in the management of establishments for the elderly, a situation that they consider worrying on human, managerial and financial levels.
Repeated alerts for a year
Concerns about EHPADs in Dijon, notably Les Jardins Voltaire and Les Bégonias, are not new. Emmanuel Bichot, president of Agir pour Dijon, and Laurence Gerbet, vice-president, say they have taken many steps to warn of the deterioration in the conditions of care for residents.
- Mars 2024 : an oral question is asked during the municipal council to draw attention to the problems.
- Avril 2024 : a column is published in the Dijon Mag.
- May 2024 : an audit, urgently requested by the Regional Health Agency (ARS), confirms the seriousness of the situation.
- Meetings with management : two meetings with EPCAPA (Public Communal Establishment for the Reception of Elderly People), in April and September 2024, did not bring any tangible progress.
Despite these efforts, no notable improvement has been noted. According to Agir pour Dijon, the municipality was slow to react, only officially recognizing the scale of the crisis a year after the first alerts.
A municipal response deemed insufficient
In a letter sent on January 16, 2025 to the families and staff of the EHPADs concerned, the municipality detailed its first measures to respond to the crisis. However, these proposals are widely criticized by Agir pour Dijon, which considers them ineffective and unsuitable.
A new administrative floor:
The municipality plans to add a new level of management by calling on EPNAK, a national public establishment, to support EPCAPA. This decision is seen as a way of “ dilute responsibilities and slow down actions“. Agir pour Dijon also highlights a potential conflict of interest, since the president of EPNAK, Madame Tenenbaum, already sits on the board of directors of EPCAPA as a municipal councilor.
Funding considered insufficient:
Although the ARS has released an exceptional envelope of 800,000 euros in 2024, this amount is far from enough to fill a deficit estimated at nearly 2 million euros. Agir pour Dijon emphasizes the need to resolve structural cash flow problems rather than relying on temporary measures.
Solutions requested for sustainable management
Faced with this situation which they describe as “catastrophic”, Emmanuel Bichot and Laurence Gerbet call for radical and lasting measures :
- Change of direction:
According to them, the current management team has demonstrated its incompetence to remedy the situation and must be replaced. - Real estate reinvestment:
They are asking for a significant effort on the part of the city to reduce the real estate charges of EHPADs, in particular the rents deemed “ excessive« .
A humanitarian and financial crisis
Beyond financial problems, this crisis has a direct impact on EHPAD residents, among the most vulnerable in the population. Care conditions, which have been singled out for more than a year, continue to deteriorate according to the Agir pour Dijon group, accentuating tensions among families and staff.
For Agir pour Dijon, it is urgent that the municipality takes its responsibilities and implements a concrete action plan to remedy the situation. They also call for increased transparency and dialogue with all stakeholders to avoid further deterioration.
Growing pressure on the municipality
As criticism mounts, the municipality faces increasing pressure to respond effectively and quickly to this crisis. Residents, their families and EHPAD staff are waiting for tangible solutions, while the opposition promises to maintain mobilization to defend the interests of the most vulnerable.
