In France, around 91,000 people are affected by renal failure according to Health Insurance. This pathology affects the functioning of the kidneys, which no longer filter the body’s blood correctly, and imposes on those who suffer from it a dialysis which takes place on average three times a week, or a kidney transplant. To follow their treatment, dialysis patients must go to a hemodialysis center or a medicalized dialysis unit.
As the Paris Olympic Games approach, which begin on July 26, dialysis patients in centers in the Paris region fear they will face major difficulties in getting to their dialysis on time, warns the France Rein association. Indeed, many traffic restrictions will be observed during this period, including the arrival of Olympic lanes on 185 km of road, which will be able to be used by accredited vehicles to transport athletes, journalists, official delegations, emergency and security vehicles, taxis and ambulances.
Faced with this observation, the France Rein association is calling for priority access for people who need to go to a dialysis center.
A priority pass to limit the anxiety of dialysis patients
As Brigitte Thévenin-Lemoine, vice-president of France Rein, explains to BFMTV, “Dialysis patients have to go to a health facility three times a week, to undergo a heavy and tiring four-hour treatment that involves putting all their blood through a machine to do the job that kidneys usually do when they work.” That’s why, she says, it’s essential that they have access to a priority pass to get to their dialysis. During the Olympic Games, these patients won’t be able to “move around on foot or by bike as is recommended for the rest of the population”she adds.
In addition, it indicates to BFMTV that emergency vehicles and ambulances authorized to use the Olympic routes are dedicated to “immediate emergencies such as a myocardial infarctionand not to go to dialysis.” What the France Rein association is asking for, “That patients can move around with a certificate from their institution or their medical team, indicating that they are on dialysis, so that they can move around as freely as possible and that the police are informed.”underlines Brigitte Thévenin-Lemoine in the columns of FranceinfoA document that would allow people on dialysis to have no worries about the monitoring of their treatment during the Paris Olympic Games.
Sources :
- Chronic Kidney Disease and Chronic Kidney Failure: Definition and Causes – Health Insurance
- Paris: the concern of dialysis patients during the Olympic Games – BFMTV
- Paris 2024: France Rein association calls for priority pass for people with kidney failure – Franceinfo
