We've been following Mrs G.* for nearly 3 years.
The link came about little by little, with ups and downs, good and bad times. She is in Belgium without papers. The possibilities to shelter and take care of her are therefore limited.
She sometimes talks about going home. After a long examination of her administrative situation, especially in France, we understand that she won’t have many more opportunities there.
We then offered her an apartment, in a temporary occupation project, where she would not have to pay rent. She could keep this accommodation for a year but in the end she hardly lived there. There were lots of challenges, some of which we hadn’t thought of before. Having access to this apartment for free was certainly an opportunity for her. On the other hand, she found making the apartment into her home very complicated without income, and with mental health issues turning out to be different than those manifest on the street. Finally, this project had to end, and it was our patient’s decision.
After several months of trying to accompany her by very small steps in other projects, we saw her deteriorate gradually. More than before. It became more and more complicated to make her respect appointments or even just to go for a warm coffee. In our team and with the network we discussed at length what could be done next, we tested some things, but her situation continued to worry us.
After many months of reflection, we decided to try and hospitalize her for observation. It is never something we decide lightly: certain criteria must be met and above all, it can be a shock for the patient. We discussed it with her very transparently, explaining that we were starting the procedure, that people would come and see her to give their opinion on the situation.
Everything went very smoothly, and she will remain hospitalized for a few weeks, time to take stock of her physical and mental health, and especially to rest.
For our part, the reflection about the future continues, despite the few opportunities available to us...
Testimony of Margaux, social worker
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(*) We do our utmost to respect the privacy of our patients and our professional secrecy. However, we want to testify to how they must survive and how we are working together to reintegrate them. As a result, the names of places and people are deliberately omitted or changed and real-life situations are placed in a different context. There is no direct link between the photos and the stories above..