three new vaccination centers in Alsace for people at risk

The number of cases of monkey pox is falling in Europe, but they have still doubled in the Grand-Est compared to last month according to Public Health France. Three preventive vaccination centers for people at risk opened at the end of August in Alsace to meet growing demand.

Despite a drop in monkeypox cases in Europe, the latest figures for the Grand Est show a doubling of cases since last month, with 90 cases in the Grand Est as of August 29, compared to 44 cases a month earlier. . Preventive vaccination has been implemented only for those most at risk of the virus, namely multi-partner men who have sex with men (MSM), trans people reporting multiple sexual partners, sex workers, as well as professionals in places of sexual consumption and health professionals who take care of sick people.

Three additional vaccination centers

The vaccination campaign began in early July at the Free Center for Information, Screening and Diagnosis (CeGIDD) in Strasbourg by the International Vaccination Center, which already provided vaccinations against Covid-19, as well as the Trait d’ Union, an establishment which also deals with medical support for the AIDS virus. Two other centers in Alsace opened at the end of July and the beginning of August at the Center Hospitalier Louis Pasteur in Colmar and at the CeGIDD in Mulhouse.

In July, all the appointments of the CeGIDD in Strasbourg were already filled until September. Faced with the influx of requests, and although the trend is generally downward in Europe, an additional “vaccinodrome” opened on August 29, also at the CeGIDD in Strasbourg, which can accommodate 250 more appointments per week compared to to the 70 slots offered previously.

Two other vaccination centers have also opened at the Covid vaccination centers in Sélestat and Illkirch-Graffenstaden. The first will provide 40 appointments from the beginning of September and has already vaccinated 20 people. The second ensures around 80 appointments per week. The three new centers offer appointments directly on Doctolib.

No extra staff

These centers have already made it possible to lighten the workload in existing centers according to Christophe Mulberg, doctor at the CeGIDD in Colmar:

“There is a month of waiting here, so sometimes we redirect people to these nearby centres. We must already insert the vaccinations between the medical appointments, since we are three doctors to provide the service each in turn. There is no dedicated time slot so we intercalate between our other appointments. For tonight, I have seven vaccinations planned. »

From the start of vaccination, the centers warned of the lack of personnel to vaccinate. On July 26, 2022, an order relating to vaccination against monkeypox allowed retired doctors to prescribe and administer vaccines and retired nurses to administer them on medical prescription, as well as certain students who had received specific training .

“It’s a temporary organization that cannot last”

The services adapt to the lack of personnel according to the health reserve and the contacts ready to help, as explained by Dr. John Lenertz, head of the Sélestat vaccination center:

“We have a pool of personnel to make available. My assistant, for example, is retired. We also have students for vaccination. Two people from the town hall came to help us to manage Doctolib and for the reception. It’s bearable for now. »

At the CeGIDD in Mulhouse, which opened at the end of July, the 30 vaccinations per week are done on Wednesdays. Jakub Kowalczyk, hospital practitioner at CeGIDD, details a difficult situation:

“We try to be at least two, one person in administration and the other in vaccination, today there were four of us so it was fine. But as soon as someone comes in with suspicion of smallpox, it upsets the whole organization. For the Covid vaccination everything was planned upstream, by calls for volunteers, but the vaccinations were more important. We did not have these means and all the same had to absorb this campaign into our activity. We try to detach ourselves, for example a person who is a clinical study technician at CeGIDD came to support us. It is a temporary organization that cannot last. ”