2023-11-13 08:50:12
Ahead of the examination of the 2024 social security budget, the Fondamental Foundation, with associations of users and stakeholders in psychiatry, is sending an “Open Letter” (below) to the Ministry of Health and parliamentarians. The signatories plead for the urgent deployment of the Expert Centers model in the territory, “the spearhead of precision psychiatry” in France.
Today, an unprecedented coalition, bringing together patient and family associations and hospital and private psychiatrists, is mobilizing to send an urgent appeal to the French public authorities. In an open letter addressed to the Minister of Health, to the Director of the General Directorate of Healthcare Supply (DGOS), as well as to the Deputies and Senators, their voices are raised to demand concrete measures aimed at sustainably improving the management of psychiatric illnesses which affect millions of French people.
Expert Centers, specialized care and research platforms
The psychological, social and economic consequences of psychiatric illnesses are considerable, for patients and their families. Added to this is an unacceptable loss of opportunity, due to lack of appropriate, rapid and local support. However, an effective solution exists: FundaMental Expert Centers (CE), care and research platforms which aim to optimize the screening, diagnosis and management of the most severe psychiatric illnesses, such as bipolar disorders, depression, schizophrenia and autism spectrum disorders.
Designed and created by the FondaMental Foundation with the support of the Ministry of Higher Education, Research and Innovation, the FondaMental Expert Centers bring together the skills of multidisciplinary teams specialized by pathology. These centers have already proven their effectiveness in improving the prognosis of patients, with 50% reduction in re-hospitalizations 12 months following a visit to an Expert Center, essential data for users and families of users as highlighted by the signatories of the letter.
A model that just needs to be deployed throughout the country
Although these FondaMental Expert Centers have been deployed in France since 2010 and there are today 53 of them, they remain experimental and unevenly distributed across the territory. This situation creates disparities in access to care and deprives many patients of the help they need.
The FondaMental Expert Centers are the spearhead of precision psychiatry in France, where each patient receives treatment adapted to their specific needs. We must work together to make this care accessible to all who need it. » Marion Boyer, General Director of the FondaMental Foundation
As the exam approaches social security financing bill (PLFSS) 2024, patients, families and health professionals are calling on public authorities to take their requests into account. While one in three people will experience an episode of mental illness in their lifetime, it is urgent to sustain and extend the model of FondaMental Expert Centers to adequately respond to constantly increasing demand. The signatories of the letter express their hope that this situation can find a solution for themselves and their loved ones. They are calling for their request to be effectively taken into account and awaiting a response from the public authorities.
• Open letter, November 13, in pdf.
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