Kosovo suffers from lack of anesthesiologists, QKUK needs another 80

Only 45 anesthesiologists are engaged in the University Clinical Centre of Kosovo (QKUK), which should care for 40 working units and 34 operating halls. In addition to the absence, public health institutions are facing the removal of this staff, whether in private clinics or even outside Kosovo.

The director of the Anesthesia and Intensive Medicine Clinic, Gazmend Spahija, has told Online Economy that 80 anesthesiologists are currently needed at QKU. He has said that with such a small number, they engage in 40 working units.

For now, we have 45 anesthesiologists engaged in total. These 45 anesthesiologists are engaged in 40 working units where they need anesthesia; we have 34 active operating halls that try to cover six units that we call internistics, where gastroscopes, coloscopis are performed. Then in Radiology, where Brahiorapy is performed, magnetic resonance, children who need anesthesia. We with this number are engaged in these 40 units that we try to cover”, Spahija said.

And according to the estimates we did at the University of Anastasia College, it takes 120 anesthesiologists. And we're also trying not to leave a room without anesthesiologists, that during this last period of time we have an increase in services at QKU, this increase of services we can't follow, we have clinics that have four operating halls, which we're not able to supply to delegate, four anesthesiologists at the same time, we're trying to get at least 50 percent of those halls to work, we're trying to provide at least 2 anesthesiologists in the field of <1x> Spazia put it out.

He also showed the number of anesthesiologists from the public sector. The cause of this is coming to be a low pay, while waiting to have their departures reduced by entering into force of the Law of the Gentiles.

“Yes, it's only been 2022 we've lost 11 anesthesiologists, so it's been a year where we've had a very large year of anesthesiologists, one has retired, one unfortunately changed lives, so we totally from 2020 when we've only had the first removal of surgeons, we've been short of 23 anesthesiologistss including these retired anesthesiologists, or even those two colleagues who unfortunately changed their lives to”, he says, while he says there's no an anestheatheathesiologists in Kosovo unemployed.

And so far, we have 7 specialists who have cut off the contract, out of 44, 4 anesthesia specialists have not come at all, so only 40 of them have left us, leaving Kosovo is mainly the escape of specialists, otherwise experts who leave QKU are all in the private sector”, he said.

“Normal, working conditions cannot be said to be bad in an anesthesia, but salaries, then in these 24-hour services we're holding, caregivers we've been frequented every 6th day, that is, they're frequent custodys, custody with a volume of work, and that's increasing the burden of an anesthesiologist, in the private sector, the maintenance has a lot less rare, the salary is normal even for that and that's driving them away. The wage law is a very good motivation for anesthesiologists who have decided to work in the public sector, that is, a very good offer, which offers everywhere meet the needs of an anesthesiologist”, Spahija said further.

Another public sector problem is the lack of nurses.

Escape abroad and retirement are the two causes this clinic is facing lack of nurses. Spahija also says that by the time nurses go on regular vacation or barking, they are not replaced by youths.

“For the Anesthesia clinic we've applied for 25 nurses, the trouble they're giving birth to is that nurses all of us have new age, nurses who take holidays and pregnancy, and lehonia vacations, these nurses remain nurses of our clinic, but when they get pregnant, unfortunately, they haven't arrived with other nurses and nurses who have been the most charged, that is, even with their own work, says Spahi.

Spahija has voiced optimism that with the admission of 70 young nurses to KKUK, there will be little gap in the clinic.