Senator Catherine Deroche (Republican – Maine-et-Loire, President of the Social Affairs Committee in the Senate) spoke in public session on the law proposal on the citizen rescuer and specifically mentioned “structural heart diseases“.
The law proposal that was submitted for consideration is organised around three axes: to create a status of citizen rescuer, to identify and protect those who provide assistance to victims; to raise awareness of the population about life-saving gestures; to clarify the organisation of the various awareness-raising and first aid training courses.
The senator made a connection with the health situation by recalling the launch of the White Plan to avoid a collapse of the health system during the outbreak of the epidemic. This plan led to the cancellation of planned care and interventions and the postponement of consultations considered non-essential. Many French people suffering from chronic illnesses, including structural heart disease, have postponed necessary treatment and are still hesitating to go to their doctor or hospital. Yet, with regard to Covid-19, these people concentrate the risk factors because of their age and the impact of the virus on the cardiovascular system. As many health professionals have pointed out, if care and interventions, particularly in cardiac surgery, do not resume quickly, we are heading towards a second health catastrophe. It is therefore urgent to speed up the resumption of care as much as possible, in order to avoid cardiac arrest in particular.
By recalling the fragility of people suffering from structural heart disease, the senator is helping to highlight the need to improve their proper management.