IK Saturday: Only 600 tests currently remain, another 2000 expected

Kosovo currently has a total of 600 tests and expects these days the achievement of 2,000 others to confirm cases with the new coronavirus, which causes COVID-19. This data has been confirmed by the World Health Organisation in Kosovo.

Since February 8th of this year, until April 15th, some 5,000 cases of contacts that may have had confirmed cases have been observed.

At the Kosovo Ministry of Health and the National Institute of Public Health in Kosovo. [ IK The KPS has not provided any information about the actual number of tests in Kosovo.

Kosovo cannot produce tests for COVID-19, depends on import

But according to an IKSHPK media communiqué of April 13th, it is said that 11,250 tests have been contracted so far, while in the process of prosecution there is also demand for 10,000 more tests, for which the necessary procedure has begun.

Yes, according to the communiqué, 2,500 more tests have been requested through the United Nations Children's Fund [for Children] U n NICEF and another request for 3,500 tests were submitted to the United States Development Agency. [File] U n AID, through the World Health Organization.

Some of the Western Balkan countries seem to stay better in the testing process. According to the Worldometers website, which traces the cases of coronarys, by April 16th, Serbia has tested 3,008 people in one million people -- Croatia 4,691 people, Bosnia and Herzegovina 4,066 -- North Macedonia 4,446, and Montenegro has tested 6,168.

Kosovo does not figure on this site, but according to a simple estimate, Kosovo has more than 1.7 million inhabitants and 3,720 tests, which seem to have tested over 2,100 people in one million people. The worst is Albania, with 1.584 people tested in one million people.

Even World Health Organisation officials in Kosovo agree that the number of tests is small, but according to them, it depends on existing capacities.

Isme Humolli, official for emergencies in this organisation, told Radio Free Europe, that the demand for such tests has from all countries of the world, so it is delayed their arrival to Kosovo.

Hummol estimates that as the number of tested persons increases, so will the number of infected citizens with the new coronary.

This is not the fault of institutions, but it's the question of the long-time inefficiency of reactions [substance affecting the conduct of a reaction or analysis] that have already been bought. All tests that Kosovo has conducted so far are tests that have either been bought by the Ministry of Health or donated by the World Health Organization. The agencies are trying to buy more of these tests. But the global situation has made each country have big demands. And it's very hard and takes a lot of time to get to Kosovo”, says Humolli.

In addition to lack of tests, Kosovo also faces a lack of medical personnel necessary to deal with pandemic.

In Kosovo there are 22 epidemiologists for the whole country and 29 microbiologists. Experts estimate that in the first category, Kosovo also needs 17 and more 32 microbiologists.

Also, in Kosovo, there is only one laboratory of molecular microbiology, which has been operating since 2009.

Otherwise, by April 16th, 423 confirmed cases of the new virus, 10 cases of death and 74 cured patients have been recorded in Kosovo.