“I put my grandfather there with my eyes closed, but today…”: the anger of families against a high-end nursing home in Montpellier

Le ticket d’entrée pour une chambre de 20 m2 avec balcon et les soins est de 5 600 €. DR

If Maisons de famille is one of these Ehpad with high-end services and a good reputation, the Montpellier establishment has been under fire for several months. Testimonials.

"Our watchword, quality first!", claims the Maisons de famille group, specialized in welcoming frail elderly people in a high-end environment. Where the 20 m2 room, for a resident, and with care, is 5,600 euros. And to add that the choice of the name of the group was obvious, because “This is what was missing in the area, the atmosphere of a home and the spirit of a family“. Speeches, images and videos on their website complete the demonstration.

It was all this that convinced the L. family to place their mother in this establishment, located in the Saint-Martin district. “Every time I visited a retirement home, I came out in tears. When I saw the Maisons de famille website, and then when we came to visit their house in Montpellier, I immediately felt confident. The premises were beautiful and all air-conditioned, the garden pleasant, the rooms bright, the lounges and restaurants of good quality. Although the establishment is expensive, we said to ourselves that at least there would be all the services opposite“, she says.

The Maisons de famille ethics guide

“Our group aspires to become the most trusted player recognized for the quality of its care and services, allowing each person to live a more pleasant, fulfilling and inclusive life“, we can read in the introduction to the group's ethics guide created in 2003, and signed by the CEO of the group, the Chairman of the Board of Directors, the CEO of Maisons de famille, and the directors of the houses in Spain, Germany and Italy.

The four main values ​​listed in the guide and which guide their organization are: “humanity, ethics, positivity and requirement“, which are the foundation”for taking care of residents and responding as best as possible to their expectations“.

The family group manages 16 establishments in France, and 150 establishments spread between Spain, Italy and Germany. While the share capital of the Maisons de Famille group is held by the founders, it is however today held mainly by the Creadev investment fund belonging to Mulliez Family Association (owner Auchan, Decathlon).

From enchantment to disenchantment

The L. family was not the only one to believe in it, especially since the Montpellier establishment had a very good reputation. “This home was considered the best in Montpellier in terms of living conditions, food and supervision. It was a happy home, with lots of activities for the residents, whatever their level of dependency.  There was good manners and good manners. I placed my grandfather there with my eyes closed. Today, everything is going to hell“, says Géraldine (not her real name).

Even if the slightest hitch is experienced acutely, the disenchantment of families is based on dysfunctions that all note in unison. These include: night calls that no one answers or very late; basic toilets; a high staff turnover, with the use of untrained intermediaries who are abandoned to their fate; a drop in the quality of food, rationing of incontinence protection, dressings, disposable gloves, etc. or even insufficient cleaning of the rooms.

"We had to insist with the management several times to have my father washed. We also complained that when the meal was served to him in his room, the tray was just placed in front of him while he needs assistance to cut his food. Not to mention that the nursing staff changes all the time, which confuses him even more. And, for all the requests we make, we never get a clear and precise answer“, Justin (not his real name) gets angry.

Caregivers at the end of their tether

This is the same observation that some of the care staff draws. “Before, we had time to take care of the residents, wash them, get them ready, chat with them, take them to the garden and even do some activities for them. Now we are so busy that we pass by in a hurry when we are supposed to share life moments with them. It hurts my heart because, whether we like it or not, we get attached“, confides Julie (not her real name).

And other caregivers talk about the departure of some of them, those of the resident doctor and the cooks who juggle with ever-tightening budgets, as well as the rationing of care equipment.”How can we leave residents with the same protection for a whole day when at their advanced age they are prone to incontinence? ? This is not dignified. It is almost abusive, even if there is no physical violence against them. It is also not normal that they are sometimes left in their bed for a whole morning due to a lack of staff and that they do not have activities adapted to their dependency. It's not for nothing that the establishment is no longer full“, notes another caregiver.

“Our mantra is quality”

“The word restriction used by families and caregivers shocks me. These are absolute fantasies, whether it's about incontinence protection or food. We have a level of requirement specific to the company that makes it impossible to make the slightest "savings on all this", protests the CEO of the Maisons de Famille group, Pascal Brunelet.

Before recalling that "the difference from other groups in this sector, "it is a family group and not an investment fund that pays dividends to its shareholders. We are, in fact, in a long-term strategy“.

Furthermore, in terms of management, Maisons de famille is the “Ehpad group with the highest ratio, i.e. 0.85 FTE (full-time equivalent) per resident, as noted in the 2022 Court of Auditors report“. Without denying the staff turnover, “we are however still in this same ratio throughout the year, but it is true that we have difficulty stabilizing our team of caregivers. But it is the same for all the other groups in this sector. And it is also a problem common to all service professions“.

As for customer dissatisfaction, he emphasizes that “whatever Ehapd you place your parents in, it's always complicated and guilt-inducing. In fact, customers are strict about everything. That said, we're in the human field, so there may be faults. But our mantra is quality. Besides, we don't consider that we have residents but customers to whom we must offer a quality requirement superior, and that's what we're trying to do“.

Because of this context, families have given management an ultimatum. If they are not heard, many are considering looking for another establishment for their loved ones. And some have already decided to contact the Regional Health Agency. To be continued.

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