They are great. They don’t always realize it. They are most often modest and often prefer to remain in the shade. But, this Monday morning, on the first day of deconfinement, it is time to put them in full light. They are called Evelyne, Sofia, Pauline, Maëlle, Flore, Abdelaali, Yann, Dominique, Pedro… and many others. Those who allow us today to circulate (practically) freely, those who allowed us to hold during his 55 days with us, those who fed us, transported, helped, advised … Often in disregard of their own health security.
Many of these anonymous have ignored their fear, their anguish, sometimes their meager salary, so that the country continues to work. Without counting those who voluntarily, counting neither their time nor their commitment, showed such a welcome solidarity. By choosing to paint a portrait of some of them, it is to all of these “beautiful people”, women and men, young and old, bosses and employees, that we pay tribute in this special issue. May this great momentum continue for a long time.
And of course, there are those who looked after us. Every evening at 8 p.m. sharp, the French continue to applaud them and they deserve it so much. Heroes? For many, they have only done “their job”. Sometimes at the cost of their own health. 60,436 cases of suspected Covid have been reported among staff in nursing homes and in hospitals according to Santé Publique France. How many died? Thirty or so people have paid with their lives to help others. We also pay tribute to them.
So, yes, the number of patients in intensive care fell from 7,100, at the height of the wave to 2,776 this Sunday, May 10. According to the latest data, 70 patients died in 24 hours in France, bringing the number of victims to 26,380. This is the lowest daily toll since confinement. But there are 22,569 hospital patients in France. Everything is far from over.
“The epidemic is still active and evolving”
The new epidemic foci in the Dordogne, in a college in Vienne, and in Clamart in the Hauts-de-Seine sound like a warning. “The epidemic is still active and evolving, we must continue our efforts to curb it as much as possible,” recalls the Directorate General of Health.
To avoid a second wave, so much dreaded especially the worn white blouses, it is necessary at each exit to keep the same strategy: distance of a meter and mask when it is impossible, freezing in the pocket, protection of the most vulnerable.
In this overwhelming period, marked by the formula “Never, I never thought I would live this”, this chain of solidarity, the scale of which we show, reassures and comforts. “While the outside world is perceived as dangerous, the enemy has been approached together, it gives the feeling of belonging to a community and strengthens the image of the group”, analyzes Dominique Picard, psychosociologist, specialist in interpersonal relations. This spirit of mutual aid does not only do good to the people who benefited from it, according to the expert. But to everyone because we see that it exists, that it is possible. “We tell ourselves that there are people who think of us. There have been great gestures. And little ones. Like knocking on the door of her elderly neighbor to get news. Let these actions, however small, continue.
