change font size

print version

copyright

Other languages:

Life in Kosovo debates healthcare issues-

24 12 2009  

Life in Kosovo broadcast a debate on the findings of a one-year monitoring of the health sector conducted by the Balkan Investigative Reporting Network (BIRN).

Questions asked included: what were the findings of the project summarised and published in the report? Who are the doctors that do not respect their working hours in public health institutions, in order to have time to work in their own private clinics?

Why has the Ministry of Health refused a donation of dialysis equipment? How is the problem of the persistently limited supply of medications from the official ‘essential list’ to be solved?

To discuss these and other topics related to healthcare, host Edona Musa was joined in the studio by:

Ali Sadriu, the Executive Director of the University Clinical Center of Kosovo (UCCK)  
Qamile Morina, a healthcare committee member
Afrim Loku, an analyst on health care issues
Alban Selimi, a journalist covering the health care sector for Lajm newspaper  

At the opening of the show, Edona explained that representatives from the Ministry of Health (MoH) had been invited to participate in the show, but did not respond.

She then explained how BIRN’s one-year study of Kosovo’s healthcare institutions has collected much evidence of poor standards, with the lack of medication from the ‘essential list’, terrible standards of hygiene, and doctors’ low incomes as the most concerning issues uncovered.

Starting with Ali Sadriu, executive director of the University Clinical Center of Kosovo (UCCK), who had read BIRN’s report, started by claiming that the report should have included positive findings as well, including more in-depth data, rather than focusing on only a few concerns.

He went on to argue that working hours in UCCK are complicated since, as well as the need to care for patients, the centre’s doctors need to focus on their academic studies and developments in medicinal science, as “technology and science today progresses very fast.”

Qamile Morina, a health care committee member and anaesthetist at UCCK, claimed that since representatives from MoH were not present, they could not explain all the concerns related to Kosovo’s healthcare provisions.

The panel, Morina said, have very limited information regarding the system. Describing the system, she said that “we don’t have a system like the one under communism, when we paid into a health care fund, nor a commitment from the Ministry to change it, since they just promise and, for two years, have done nothing.”

Regarding BIRN’s report, Morina claimed that the findings about disrespect of working hours by medical professionals is not very serious, since “there are many people who do a wonderful job, saving lives under terrible conditions.”  

Afrim Loku, an analyst on healthcare issues, began by claiming that a report like BIRN’s should have been published a long time ago, since the sector has not been paid much attention by Kosovo’s authorities.

In response to other participants’ comments on the need for more positive comments, Loku claimed that the critical side is most important, since this highlights the issues that every citizen is concerned about and affected by.

Alban Selimi, a journalist from the newspaper Lajm and a member of BIRN’s healthcare monitoring team, claimed that the report has deficiencies and needs improving.

However, he said, “no report can be said to be perfect, as facts change. This report could have been evenbetter, but, because it is the first of its kind, it contains many useful recommendations and suggestions.”

Sadriu, on the issue of doctors who do not respect their working hours, claimed that he has had a meeting with managers from various departments, but not with all, and will draw up a common agreement in order to solve this, along with other problems.

Breaking up the debate, Life in Kosovo also included two investigative reports that provided information on the lack of respect for working hours on the part of public health sector doctors and the lack of functioning medical equipment at UCCK.

In the first story, Edona spoke about how some doctors, instead of attending their shifts at UCCK, go to work in their private clinics, whilst still being paid by UCCK.

In response to this story, Sadriu, who was not in his current position in UCCK at the time the story was produced, said that working hours will be very strictly respected, not only in his institution, but also “in every small family clinic, and every other healthcare institution and department”.

The second story, on the lack of medical equipment, told the story about MoH’s refusal of a donation of 25 pieces of dialysis equipment. Such provision would have been beneficial, since, -Edona said, people from Podujevo must travel the 40km to Pristina three times a week to receive treatment, because their municipality cannot afford the necessary equipment.

However, MoH refused the donation, claiming that the equipment was not of a suitably high quality.

In response, Fatmir Mulaj, a representative of Gambro, the Swedish company offering the equipment, claimed that the equipment was in line with the standards of the Swedish Ministry of Health, and that he was been told that the equipment simply had not been the same as that currently used at UCCK.

The donations were being offered through the Swedish Embassy in Pristina, and the Swedish ambassador, Ingrid Johansson, stated that they had presented the offer in detail. However, Kosovo’s Minister for Health was allegedly not at all interested in the offer.

BIRN also broadcast the special ‘The Week’s Highlight’ segment, in which journalist Fatos Halili revealed the standards of hygiene in the health centre in Mitrovica’s Fidanishte neighbourhood.

Life in Kosovo wrapped up with satirical magazine Lamjet, which poked fun at the week’s main news events.

Life in Kosovo is a co-production between Kosovo Public Television, RTK and the Balkan Investigative Reporting Network, BIRN. It is broadcast every Thursday, starting at 20:20.