FILE. Laura Sendrous, palliative care social worker: “Everything is on hold”

Laura Sendrous est assistante sociale à l’unité de soins palliatifs de l’hôpital privé du Grand Narbonne. – DR

What does the health world expect from the new government? ? The dissolution of the National Assembly has postponed the debate on the end of life while the discussions were lively, and the text discussed highly controversial. A social worker in the palliative care unit of the Grand Narbonne Private Hospital, Laura Sendrous knows that the debate is not over.

A formal vote was scheduled for June 18. The dissolution of the National Assembly prematurely ended, on June 9, the examination, at first reading, of the bill on support for patients at the end of life. Since then, the debate has completely left the public arena, after months of impassioned discussions.

At the Grand Narbonne Private Hospital, the subject takes on a particular meaning: “We talk about it a lot, our department head is Claire Fourcade”, president of the Sfap, the French Society for Support and Palliative Care, who is firmly opposed to the prospect of involving caregivers in assisted dying, recalls Laura Sendrous, 39. Social worker in the unit, she acts as an interface between patients and their families on one side, and the care team on the other.

Today, “Everything is on hold, we feel like there is less urgency. But we know that the debate will be put back on the table quickly, it is a societal issue”, testifies the young woman. It remains to be seen how.

“We had talked a lot about the future law, the dissolution was a surprise, a shock”

“When the dissolution came, it was a surprise for the caregivers, a shock. There was a lot of talk about the future law, about how we were going to work… what was planned, giving a lot of power to doctors, was scary, we were panicked” remembers Laura Sendrous. This summer, “the teams started working more calmly again”.

As for the families,“Their first concern is that their loved one be relieved, that they be supported. They know very well that euthanasia is now prohibited by law.” Laura Sendrous has not changed her mind: "There was the possibility for a loved one to give the lethal substance. I don't think that families should be given this power. I do bereavement counseling, I know how difficult it is".

The new law also planned to give more resources to palliative care teams: "I hope that will be the case, for now, nothing has changed, and we cannot intervene at home as we should", regrets the social worker, who is not betting on the future: "We tell ourselves that the urgency of the new government may not be there". But as soon as she took office on Monday, September 23, Geneviève Darrieussecq wanted Parliament to “finish the job” on the end of life.

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