Within the 64th Belgrade International Book Fair at the stand of the Ministry of Defense and the Serbian Armed Forces, on Tuesday, October 22, 2019, a segment of military healthcare was presented through various contents.

The starting panel at the fair stand of the Ministry of Defense and the Serbian Armed Forces was dedicated to military healthcare.

About 180 years tradition and the achieved level of development of military healthcare in Serbia, the Head of the Military Healthcare Department, Brigadier General Dr. Ugljesa Jovicic, Head of the Infectious and Tropical Diseases Clinic MMA Colonel Prof. Dr. Dragan Mikic and retired general Asst. Prof. Veljko Todorovic, PhD spoke about.

General Jovicic reminded that physician’s vocation is very demanding because of its great responsibilities, just as well as because of the trust that doctors enjoy among the people. He noted that more than 600,000 specialist examinations, three million diagnostic procedures and more than 20,000 surgeries have been performed annually at military healthcare facilities.

- During 2018, 15 campaigns for free-of-charge examinations were held, and each year numerous new methods are being introduced into regular clinical practice, while a multidisciplinary approach to each patient results in successful complex surgery, said the Head of Military Healthcare Department.

He mentioned long lasting successful cooperation with civilian health institutions and the participation of Serbian Armed Forces medical teams in peacekeeping missions, in which our members proved their training, humanity and professional attitude. He also spoke about international military-medical cooperation and mentioned more than 50 international activities at home and abroad annually, as well as membership in the International and Balkan Committee on Military Medicine.

General Jovicic also cited modernization and infrastructure investments, aiming at facilitating the availability of healthcare services, reducing waiting lists, hospital days and overall treatment costs.

Speaking about personnel solutions, he pointed out that 163 workers were employed on a permanent basis this year, and that another 120 were in the process of admission, and that medical and other occupations necessary for the functioning of military healthcare were dominant.

Among the significant projects that follow, he mentioned the involvement of the veterinary service in the second and third missions of the Serbian Armed Forces, and announced the opening of the Center for Traditional Chinese Medicine at the Military Medical Academy.

- What follows is the construction of the Emergency Reception Block at the Nis Military Hospital and the beginning of the construction of the Military Gerontology Center in Belgrade, said the Head of the Military Healthcare Department.

Head of the MMA Infectious and Tropical Diseases Clinic, Colonel Prof. Dr. Dragan Mikic, spoke about MMA’s history tradition and present state. He pointed out that the MMA had been the oldest healthcare institution in our region and that it has always been a pride of citizens.

- Many people, who see the institution as their home and an institution they trust a lot, have found salvation under the roof of the Military Medical Academy so far, said Colonel Prof. Dr. Mikic.

The retired general, Assist. Prof. Dr. Veljko Todorovic, spoke about the history, the most prominent members and the ethics of military medical services, who once again emphasized that the Hippocratic Oath, written almost two and a half millennia ago, has always been and will be the holy book of all physicians.

Visitors to the stand of the Ministry of Defense and the Serbian Armed Forces at the 64th International Book Fair in Belgrade today were able to learn a bit more about the experiences of Serbian military doctors in international peacekeeping missions at another panel dedicated to military healthcare.

Presenting attractive photographs, a surgeon from the Military Hospital Nis Colonel Assistant Professor Dr. Nebojsa Djenic spoke about the history of Serbian participation in international peacekeeping missions of the United Nations and the European Union, explaining where they all were, and where Serbian military doctors and medical personnel have been deployed at present.

As the first commander-in-chief of the Serbian Military Hospital in Bangui, Central African Republic, Colonel Djenic testified about his vast experience as a peacekeeping military doctor, with particular reference to the circumstances surrounding the religious conflicts affecting the Central African Republic and the greatest challenges he experienced as a surgeon in that country.

Assistant Professor Dr. Bosko Milev of the General Surgery Clinic at the Military Medical Academy spoke about the experiences of the United Nations Peacekeeping Mission in Chad (MINURCAT), in 2009, where he had been with six colleagues who made up the first Serbian surgical team to participate within the Polish Norwegian Contingent Hospital. He stressed that the aim of the Polish field hospitals was to save lives, prevent infections and ensure further transfer to an appropriate healthcare facility.

Assistant Professor Dr. Milev also spoke about the specific conditions prevailing on the African continent, as well as the medical interventions and special techniques applied during the mission to help the injured, as well as the relationship with the local population.

Orthopedist of the Nis Military Hospital LtCol Dr. Goran Milojkovic, during today's highly attended panel, spoke about the concept of surgical management of patients in peacekeeping missions.