It is 6.30 p.m. this Wednesday evening in Verbier and Hicham El Ghaoui, a doctor in the Valais station, is starting his tenth home consultation in connection with the coronavirus. Its daily for two weeks now, when the festive and luxurious resort has established itself as an important center of contagion.
“Frankly, I sometimes consult at home, but at this point, it is exceptional.” And if he agreed to be followed for one of his consultations, it is primarily to show that confinement of the station – as claimed by some doctors in the region two weeks ago – does not would not make sense. “There are hundreds of cases of coronavirus, I am still reported every day. Verbier is still very busy, but in reality, people never leave their homes. ”
We are meeting with the Ullens, a couple of Belgian entrepreneurs and philanthropists, who have been confined for almost two weeks now with their two grandchildren and two domestic workers. Myriam, 67, still coughs slightly but admits to feeling much better even if she still has not found the taste or smell. Like many here, she has not seen the wave of the virus arrive.
“The young people went out to Farinet on the famous weekend of March 7 (note: read our survey last Sunday which shows how the virus spread during a festive weekend), and in the days that follow , we all got sick. “
Coming to Verbier in early March for team building, they planned to reach Brussels in the following days. Active in fashion, Myriam had planned the launch of a new collection. But understanding that it was the Covid-19 that hit them, they will choose to stay put. By choice not to spread the virus but also because there is much worse than Verbier to be confined. At a time when the sun is blushing the Combins massif which spreads out behind their bay window, they take things philosophically.
“We cannot complain, concedes Myriam, even if we hope to get out soon. It’s a little harder for 18 and 20 year olds who would like to push the walls. ” And to sigh after those who still haven’t gotten the message. “We see a lot of people who continue to go skiing and who are at risk of being injured and overburden hospitals.”
Guy, 85, escapes the virus
But not all of them were housed in the same boat here. Myriam’s husband, Guy, 85, paces in the vast living room of the house to the sound of crackling fire. Passionate about contemporary art, he talks about the exhibition he was setting up in Beijing. Guy was not sick and that surprises him.
“I would like to know if I have an asymptomatic form or if I still risk having it.” As surprised as he is, Hicham El Ghaoui will quickly test him. Two days later, the result fell: negative. “It’s unbelievable,” said the doctor, who is used to seeing whole families of infected children.
Like many foreigners who stayed in Verbier after being infected, the Ullens family waits for the symptoms to end before leaving. Photo: Julien Wicky
Constant measurements, a few auscultations and the doctor’s work will be quickly finished. Yet he will spend more than an hour here listening, reassuring, predicting the future. He does not wear a mask and dares to make human contact that is most appreciated by his patients. Diagnosed positive on March 11, he is now immune.
“It’s somewhere lucky to have had it and to have had it early. It creates an important bond of trust with people. When I tell them that I understand what they’re going through, they know it’s true. “
Myriam knows her luck. “It is really valuable and much more efficient than all hotlines. There was a night when I was scared because I was coughing a lot and I contacted him right away. His presence and follow-up are extremely important. ”
Coming to Verbier in 2013 out of a taste for trauma, Hicham El Ghaoui certainly did not expect to one day experience the effects of a pandemic in the resort. But paradoxically, she brought it back to the heart of the role of a family doctor. “I was leaving the other day from the home of a Genevan who tested positive and who stayed here when his family returned. He told me he was so happy to see someone in two weeks. 80% of the time, I spend it listening to and advising people. ”
Above all, he sees the differences on the social scale decrease. “Whether you are in a luxury chalet or with seasonal workers who live together in a small apartment, your worries, doubts and expectations are the same.” And to smile when he evokes the visit to a family of six people who each lived isolated in a room when all were positive for the coronavirus.
“I told them they weren’t going to risk eating anything anymore and I saw the doors open one by one with smiling heads coming out of them,” said the doctor.
Moments of solidarity
The man is very touched by the outbursts of solidarity that converge at home. “Australians I had seen before they returned home called me to say they would leave me the key to their hotel if there was a need to accommodate patients. Moved by the wave hitting the station, they wanted to do something. ”
The many patients in the region, now immunized, came knocking on his door to help. This is the case of Sned Jakovljevic who, after having benefited from the doctor’s help, now supports the youth of the village to make deliveries.
“I don’t have enough words to describe the importance of a community doctor right now. It makes us all want to raise our heads, ”she claims. Hicham El Ghaoui hopes soon to see the end of the ordeal but his agenda is still full. Once passed, no one will miss the virus here, but the links it has forged should survive.
Created: 04.04.2020, 22h23
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