There are nearly 340,000 in France living under the protection of child welfare. However, according to numerous doctors and social workers interviewed by the Radio France investigation unit, these children are among the most vulnerable in the health system. Delays in care, insufficiently treated psychological disorders, saturated structures: the situation worries professionals in the field, who fear lasting consequences on their development and life expectancy.
The scientific research is final. Violence and neglect suffered during childhood have major biological consequences. “Violence and neglect suffered in childhood will have consequences on the neuro-immune-endocrino-genetic system of adults“, explains Dr. Céline Gréco, head of the pain and palliative medicine department at the Necker-Enfants Malades hospital and president of the Im’Pactes association. According to her, child victims of violence could lose up to twenty years of life expectancy.
Babies hospitalized for months for lack of places
The survey highlights a particularly worrying situation for newborns placed at birth. At the Nantes University Hospital, some babies remain hospitalized for several weeks, even several months, simply because no foster family or nursery is available.
However, these infants do not require special medical care. But their prolonged stay in hospital can itself become a risk factor. Doctors fear forms of “hospitalism”, a syndrome linked to the absence of a stable attachment figure during the first months of life. “This is a very important period for brain development“, recalls pediatrician Nathalie Vabres, who wonders about the future after-effects of these prolonged separations.
Difficulties also affect daily care. Some children arrive at the hospital with severe dental problems, undetected hearing problems or without regular medical follow-up. In Nantes, the “Protected Health” system is now trying to coordinate the care pathways of children in care in order to avoid these disruptions.
Adolescents in psychological distress and sometimes sedated
In hospital departments, medical teams also deal with adolescents in serious psychological distress. Due to a lack of places in child psychiatry or in suitable structures, some young people stay in hospital for months.
At the Necker-Enfants Malades hospital, Professor Martin Chalumeau recognizes that heavy drug treatments can be used to maintain calm in the departments. Neuroleptics and anxiolytics sometimes become a response to the absence of suitable educational or psychiatric solutions. “We will be forced to overmedicalize them“, he regrets.
Educators and psychologists interviewed by the Radio France investigation unit also denounce a trivialization of psychotropic treatments in certain homes. Several testimonies speak of children taking anxiolytics or antipsychotics without real therapeutic follow-up, even though the delays in consulting a medical-psychological center can reach several years.
Insufficient support despite warnings
The Taquet law of 2022, however, requires a health check upon entry into the ASE system as well as annual monitoring. But only a third of the departments would manage to actually apply these obligations. Local authorities denounce saturated structures and a lack of State resources, particularly for children suffering from disabilities or psychological disorders.
Beyond the human cost, specialists also point out the economic weight of this poor care. La Ciivise estimated the cost of the consequences of sexual violence against children at nearly 10 billion euros per year in 2023. A study published in the scientific journal The Lancet estimates that the overall cost of poorly managed childhood violence could reach $38 billion for a country like France.
For professionals in the field, one conclusion is essential: without appropriate medical, psychological and educational support from childhood, trauma continues to have a lasting impact on the life paths of these already vulnerable young people.