Overview

• SOS Médecins Lille suspended non-urgent emergency care from July 3 to 5 following a violent assault and death threats against a practitioner on July 2, and the Roubaix branch also paused operations in solidarity.
• Two men burst into the Lille clinic during a consultation, expelled a patient’s family, insulted the doctor and physically attacked the practitioner before fleeing the scene.
• The closures disrupt 24/7 non-vital emergency services normally provided by around twenty doctors at the Lille office.
• The Ordre des médecins du Nord has recorded 216 incidents of aggression against physicians this year and will join as a civil party once the attackers are identified.
• Local authorities have opened an investigation into the assault, with suspects still at large and no motive publicly confirmed.