"Capacities are full - this is war"

"Capacities are full - this is war"

She added that 800 patients are currently hospitalized, of which 700 in semi-intensive care units and 100 in intensive care units.

Adzic Vukicevic points out for Tanjug that, out of 100 patients who are placed in intensive care units, 70 are in critical condition, i.e. they have been intubated and are on the verge of life and death.

"The biggest battles are currently being fought for them in this hospital," Dr Adzic Vukicevic emphasized, adding that 95% of the total number of hospitalized in that hospital had not been vaccinated.

As she says, there are also vaccinated patients in the COVID hospital in Batajnica, but their clinical pictures are much easier and their recovery is known. Also, there are two mothers in the hospital in Batajnica, one of whom delivered a baby by caesarean section, while the youngest patient is 22, and the oldest is 96 years old.

"Compared to March last year, when I thought nothing worse could happen to us, now it has happened worse with this strain of the virus, which is dangerous for the lungs above all, it is quickly transmitted, and the treatment of these patients requires enormous "amounts of oxygen that we have never had in a single wave," she said. She adds that in the last two or three weeks, there has been an influx of geriatric population, i.e. patients aged 80-90 and older.

These are old people with many comorbidities, emphasizes Adzic Vukicevic and points out that, unfortunately, they are the population that doctors can help the least. "What we have behind the walls of this hospital is war, trench warfare, hand-to-hand combat with the virus. The number of people dying on a daily basis is at the level of wartime so I can really say this is nothing but war, we are waging war", she said.

She points out that it is the hardest for doctors when patients die despite their struggle.

"We did everything in our power, we gave medicine, but when in the end you see that it is worth nothing, that it is as if you were giving a placebo, and not a real medicine, that colleagues faint from hunger, thirst, then that is it. It's devastating for us and we burned out in this fight," she said.

She adds that doctors and other medical staff are ready to endure another two or three months, but the problem is that it is not known how much longer it will last.

Stating that she is in favor of the strictest measures, she instructed the doctors and others in the Crisis Staff to introduce the strictest possible measures, to introduce a lockdown, to introduce a COVID pass if necessary...