Healthy democracy: pause during crisis

Comments from the field collected by France Assos Santé show that since the beginning of the health crisis the role of user committees (CDUs) has been undermined. He denounced that “health institutions did not know or did not want to involve them in crisis management.” Investigation Conducted with 1,180 user representatives (UK) sitting in CDUs in 1,187 health institutions. It shows a general deterioration in the work of the UK, as health institutions are often too concerned with their involvement. The survey reveals that in 2020, only 40.5% of UDCs were able to meet at least four times (the legal minimum), and only 59.4% of RUs were able to maintain contact with enterprise representatives outside of these mandatory meetings.

Deterioration of access to complaints

Most worrisome for France Assos Santé, user representatives were only associated with modifying visitation routes within organizations for 11.4% of them and 46.2% of the UK were not informed of the potential implementation of alternative visits systems. In addition, 21% of respondents believe that their access to complaints and claims has deteriorated, while their main task is to identify the main imbalances described here in order to suggest improvement in practices. The survey reveals, however, that in 49.5% of organizations the transition continued normally, proving that the system is still effective for facilities that equip themselves with the means to support it.

« Survey results show that recourse to CDU is mixed, Gérard Raymond, President of France Asos Santi regrets. It is a very “subordinate institution” and varies according to the good will of the directions and health professionals within the structures. However, the law provides for the presence of representation for users, in particular for work on the development of the health system. In France, at least 15,000 user representatives volunteer to bring users’ voice and defend their rights.

natural adaptation

As part of the Ségur de la santé, France Assos Santé appealed to strengthen this democracy in health, hoping to give more weight to the CDUs and to be considered as bodies for reflection and suggestions within the framework of improving the organization and the quality of the healthcare offer. ” But we weren’t fooled, we knew it wasn’t the priority ‘” admits Gerard Raymond. To continue: The problem is that hospital administrators and health professionals do not necessarily know how experienced we are in this field. Some believe that CDUs are only used to collect complaints from users when they can participate in discussions to improve patient reception and care. So far, France Assos Santé demands that the use of CDUs be better regulated and better managed by public authorities. ” As we enter an election period, this is an opportunity to take real action on what should be a healthy democracy. “,” Estimates Gerard Raymond, who, on the other hand, does not advocate a coercive approach, in which the use of user representatives should become a natural for management.

Laure Martin