November 17, 2022 - KBC Split was the first clinic in Croatia where hemodialysis by puncturing an endovascularly formed arteriovenous fistula (endo AVF) was successfully performed, all under the supervision of mentor Karen Tullett from Great Britain.

As Index writes, in a 34-year-old patient, on September 22, a percutaneous natural connection of the artery and vein of the forearm was successfully formed for the needs of hemodialysis procedures, with the use of the 4F WavelinQ system, which proved to be safe and effective. The success of the formation of the hemodialysis access with the new method is due to the excellent cooperation of the Department of Nephrology and Dialysis of the Clinic for Internal Diseases and the Department of Diagnostic and Interventional Radiology headed by Dr Dijana Borić Škaro and Prof. Dr Krešimir Dolić, members of the team for vascular access in charge of endoAVF interventional radiology assistant Dr Ivana Štula, nephrologist Dr Alena Srdelić and Dr Ivo Jeličić, with the assistance of an instrument technician and a radiological technologist.

Careful selection of candidates

Candidates for this method are carefully selected after excluding potential contraindications, with personal consent after detailed information about the procedure and after ultrasound "mapping" of the blood vessels, which confirms the anatomical suitability of the vasculature for the specified procedure.

Hemodialysis is a treatment method for patients in the final stage of kidney failure. Hemodialysis requires successfully designed and functionally adequate vascular access. Due to the low risk of infection and thrombosis, arteriovenous fistula is the first method of choice (compared to arteriovenous graft and central venous catheter) in most patients. Fifty years ago, an arteriovenous fistula (a connection between an artery and a vein) was formed surgically.

In recent years, with the development of percutaneous endovascular techniques, fistulas are also created by a non-surgical method, minimally invasive, without a visible postoperative scar, which has a high rate of technical success and functionality and a low risk of complications.

For more, make sure to check out our dedicated Lifestyle section.

October the 13th, 2022 - Split Hospital (KBC Split) is lacking the staff to such an extent that it has taken the rather surprising measure of banning the termination of employment contracts based on mutual agreement.

As Poslovni Dnevnik writes, the decision that N1 received from an employee of Split Hospital, it is clearly stated that "it is forbidden to conclude, by mutual agreement, the termination of an employmer/employee relationship except in the case of the need to conclude it due to the announcement of entry into retirement, as well as in the case of the provision of an employer's consent for the transfer of said employee from one healthcare institution to another for the undertaking of appropriate work."

Furthermore, it is stated that the ban applies to nurses, medical technicians and midwives, with the document stating that this decision will enter into force on the day of publication (which was October the 7th, 2022) and will remain in force until the date on which it is revoked.

"Given the current difficult staffing situation, i.e. the chronic shortage of nurses/technicians and midwives due to high rates of sick leave as well as due to the lack of the aforementioned staff on the labour market, it was necessary to come to this decision,'' it is stated in the explanation of the decision.

In the letter given to 24sata by Split Hospital discussing the details of this matter, they further clarified their decision, emphasising that they're lacking a total of 595 nurses/technicians and midwives and that this decision was made in order to provide the best possible quality of healthcare to those who need it for whatever reason.

"At the same time, there's a shortage of nurses throughout the Republic of Croatia, and our recruitment drives are constantly open to the public. In the aforementioned circumstances, due to the organisation of the services on which the care of patients depends, it is impossible to terminate an employment relationship with the person it regards expecting to be able to leave Split Hospital within a few days.

An employee is of course absolutely free to terminate their employment contract using the institute of the termination of employment while continuing to respect the proper notice period they must give. For this reason, the only motive for making this decision is that the staff member remains at their workplace for as long as it is necessary to reorganise the services being provided following their departure, and thus enable the continuity of care for our patients. In no case is there a right to severance pay, but only in the case when the employer themselves terminates the employment contract,'' Split Hospital explained in the letter.

For more, make sure to keep up with our dedicated news section.

March the 29th, 2022 - The proposal for a huge project involving the construction of a Split hospital lung disease clinic has been proposed to the HUP (Croatian Employers' Association) Committee as one of social significance.

As Poslovni Dnevnik writes, the HUP Committee for projects of social importance established for the purpose of affirming the cooperation and solidarity of HUP members through the implementation of projects for the common good, and ultimately for a sustainable future, invited HUP branches in Rijeka, Split, Osijek and Varazdin to send their project applications for projects deemed to be of humanitarian importance.

The Committee has an advisory role to the Council of Members of HUP with the task of organising and implementing projects deemed to be of humanitarian and charitable importance to needy people or organisations that work to help such people, in order to improve the quality of their lives.

The Committee for Projects of Social Importance selected, and the Council of HUP Members confirmed the proposal of the Executive Board of HUP Dalmatia Branch which is a project for the construction of a Split hospital lung disease clinic.

''KBC Split (Split hospital) is strategically important due to its position''

“The population of the whole of Dalmatia and beyond gravitates to Split hospital, so the hospital capacities need to be adjusted to these needs. The fact that the current building of the clinic was built back in 1958 shows that it is absolutely necessary to do this,'' said Zdravko Plazonic, a member of the Executive Board of the HUP Dalmatia Branch, who also thanked the members of the Council of HUP members for choosing this project as a project of social significance for the year 2022.

"Split hospital is strategically important because of its position, we serve a population of about 20 percent of the country's residents, and in the summer that number goes up to 1.5 million. On the stretch from Trieste to Athens, Zagreb and Bari, there is no larger institution or employer. Split hospital has 4,100 employees, most of whom are medical staff. In these extremely demanding times over the past few years, the hospital has managed to remain in function and offer all of its patients the necessary care. We managed to save the system in the challenging and difficult times of the coronavirus pandemic, but we do need help,'' said the director of the hospital, prof.prim.dr.sc. Julije Mestrovic.

"In our work, we mustn't be focused solely on the present day and we do need to think about what we're planning to leave as a legacy to future generations. For many years, the Croatian Employers' Association has been encouraging activities based on the principles of socially responsible business among its members. There is no long-term sustainability of any company without quality and partnership relations with its stakeholders and the responsible disposal of resources,'' said the President of the Council of Members of HUP, Ivan Misetic.

For more, check out our lifestyle section.

February 16th, 2022 - The gallery is named after Zoja Dumengjić, the architect who designed the hospital complex in Firule

It’s not every day that you hear about public medical institutions introducing art into their spaces, but the Clinical Hospital Center (KBC) in Firule, Split did just that by establishing a gallery in its central building.

The Zoja Dumengjić Gallery, named after the architect who designed the hospital complex in Firule, was opened at the ground floor of the central building of KBC Split on February 14th. As reported by Vizkultura, this was a joint project of the Croatian Association of Visual Artists Split (HULU Split) and the KBC Split. The initiative originates from the 41st Split Salon, named Not Completely Lost for Each Other and curated by Ivana Meštrov in collaboration with Ana Janevski.

Firule Hospital / Image by Sonja Leboš, UIII Archive

The newly established gallery is introducing itself to the public with its first exhibition, named Retropolis. It’s a project of the Association for Interdisciplinary and Intercultural Research (UIII), presented by visual anthropologist and ethnologist Sonja Leboš and visual artists Stella Leboš and Luana Lojić.

Retropolis is dedicated to Dumengjić, the famous architect and designer of the Firule general hospital in Split that opened in 1951.

‘The gallery will be modular and fluid, without a permanent location within the Clinical Hospital Center, and adaptable to the nature and diversity of media featured in contemporary art. However, the Zoja Dumengjić Gallery project is permanent in terms of its long-term intention. Such positive collaborations are truly rare, even in international terms, and make us especially happy as artists’, explained President of HULU Split Vice Tomasović.

Zoja Dumengjić (1904-2000) worked as a designer at the Institute of Hygiene and the School of Public Health in the 1930s, where she specialised in healthcare facilities and was largely inspired by those designed by the renowned Finnish architect Alvar Aalto.

Zoja Dumengjić / Archives of Zoja and Selimir Dumengjić

Dumengjić's work wasn’t entirely unrecognised during her long and prolific career: she won the Viktor Kovačić Lifetime Achievement Award in 1979, and received the Charter of the Split General Hospital in 1984 for her outstanding contribution to the development of the Firule hospital.

Directly inspired by the work of Zoja Dumengjić, the artworks that were displayed at the 41st Split Salon point to the importance of universally accessible architectural design for health. This principle is engrained in the very idea that led to the gallery being established in KBC Split in the first place.

‘I believe that the Zoja Dumengjić Gallery, in cooperation with HULU Split, will operate creatively and achieve long-term success within the KBC; that it will continuously strengthen Zoja Dumengjić's vision of architecture and visual arts in the service of health, but also make our patients and healthcare staff more familiar with the life and work of the architect who designed the Split hospital. I am especially glad that the gallery’s opening on the eve of the KBC Split Day which marks the merging of Firule, Križine and Toplice facilities into a joint institution’, said Dr. Julije Meštrović, director of KBC Split.

January 1, 2022 - As is the tradition in many parts of the world, most wonder who will be the first baby to be born in the year, and where. Here, we already know: the first Croatian baby in 2022 is a little girl born in Split.

As reported by 24sata.hr, the first Croatian baby to be born in 2022 is a little girl from Split, who came into the world just a minute after midnight. The baby was born by natural childbirth, and her mother is native of the island of Brač. The little one is the fourth child in the family, the fourth girl, and as we are told from the maternity ward, both mom and baby are feeling well.

Split-Dalmatia County Prefect Blaženko Boban visited the Clinic of Obstetrics and Gynecology, accompanied by the Director of KBC Split Julije Mestrović and the Head of Department dr. Marko Mimica, and donated a commemorative basket with sweets, and the first-born baby was given a gold coin, this year, with the figure of Marko Marulić.

In 2021, a total of 4410 babies were born in the maternity hospital in Split, which is about 200 more than in the previous year, 2020.

At 1:08 a.m. in the Rijeka maternity hospital, Martina Požarić from Lovran gave birth to a baby girl, Nevija. The first baby from Rijeka born in 2022 weighs 3250 grams and is 49 centimeters long, reports HRT News.

This is the third birth for Mrs. Požarić, with whom she was accompanied by her husband, and it is interesting that she decided to give birth on a chair, sitting in a natural position. According to doctor Barbara Borovac and midwife Tamara Luksetić, the birth went well, the Rijeka Clinical Hospital announced.

The Mayor of Rijeka, Marko Filipović, sent congratulations, flowers, and a special gift to the first baby born in Rijeka in 2022 and to her parents - a silver medal of St. Life.

The traditional New Year's visit of the mayor and his associates to the Rijeka maternity hospital was not held due to compliance with epidemiological measures.

The first baby in the Vukovar hospital was born at 1:15 am. She was born 2760 grams, 48 ​​centimeters long. She is the second baby of Sandra Đurić, and the name of the baby girl is Ana.

The first baby in the Vinkovci County General Hospital was born last night at three hours and twenty minutes. The mother is 28-year-old Ivona Crljić, and the baby's name is Lucija. She was born 3,980 grams and 51 centimeters in length.

Total Croatia News wishes to congratulate parents and their newborns, and we wish them good health!

For more, check out our lifestyle section.

November 7, 2021 - The first artificial heart implant at KBC Split has been announced by the head of the Split Cardiac Surgery Clinic, Mate Petričević.

The first implantation of an artificial heart has been announced at the Cardiac Surgery Department of the Split Clinical Hospital Center (KBC Split), revealed Mate Petričević, head of the Split Cardiac Surgery Clinic for N1.

Implanting a long-term mechanical circulatory support, i.e., an artificial heart, lasts approximately eight hours, and the first operation in Split will be performed at the Cardiac Surgery Department of KBC Split. This type of operation in Croatia is performed at the Zagreb University Hospital Center, where a team for mechanical circulatory support was formed, of which Petričević was a member until recently.

It is a complex procedure that includes a highly specialized team consisting of a surgeon, anesthesiologist, cardiologist, nurses in the Intensive Care Unit, physiotherapists, and psychologists.

“Hospitals that perform artificial heart implants have the status of centers of excellence in the field of cardiac medicine. Until recently, these types of operations were reserved for only a few centers in the USA and Europe, and soon KBC Split should be on the world map of expert centers for artificial heart implants," says Petričević.

Candidates for artificial heart implants are mostly patients with hearts in the terminal failure phase, i.e., their heart function is dramatically low, and conservative treatment methods are exhausted.

Unfortunately, there are more and more young patients who need it. For them, an artificial heart can serve as a bridge to a heart transplant, while in the elderly, an artificial heart is the final form of treatment without the need for a later transplant.

"Lately, we have been witnessing patients who have had an artificial heart implanted as a bridging therapy until a transplant, but those who are satisfied with an artificial heart later give up the transplant," said Petričević.

After surgery, patients stay in the hospital for three weeks because patient education is a critical aspect of treatment. At the hospital, the patient learns to live with the device to be independent once released. 

Complications most often occur when too much blood-thinning medication is taken, bleeding occurs, or too little is taken, and the clot enters the pump system. In this case, the clot should dissolve or, in the worst case, the device is replaced with a new one.

The pump is a propeller that levitates in a magnetic field and rotates up to ten thousand revolutions per minute. Rotating blood flow is created according to the principle of the Archimedes screw, and this flow is constant, which is why patients no longer have a measurable pulse after an artificial heart is implanted. 

“Previous generations of devices generated pulse flow; however, these types of devices were larger and more complex and therefore more susceptible to failures. Today's technology has reached a high level, and in a few years, I expect that this type of device will have the dimensions of batteries for home use," says Petričević.

If the operation goes well and the therapy is carried out without any complications, the installed device can last for more than 20 years.

Research is currently being conducted, and everything is being documented precisely. The results are encouraging, and Petričević believes it will get even better over time.

“When you consider 10 or 20 years of living with an artificial heart and compare it to the condition of a terminal heart patient who has exhausted the treatment option, it is clear that this is a big step in the treatment of heart disease,” he concluded.

For more, make sure to check out our dedicated lifestyle section.

A man has been quarantined at the Split KBC hospital as a precautionary measure while he is tested for the coronavirus. "The patient is isolated at the Infectious Diseases Clinic; but the coronavirus diagnosis has not yet been confirmed," the hospital reported to Dalmatinski portal on February 2, 2020. 

*UPDATE February 3, 2020 at 19:10 CET: Further coronavirus test results have confirmed the patient does not have the coronavirus.

Split Crisis Staff Doctors for the Prevention and Control of Infections held a press conference today February 3, 2020 at 13:00 CET regarding the case.The tests finding were sent to the Clinic for Infectology Fran Mihaljevic in Zagreb. They should know today whether his symptoms are due to a coronavirus infection or if they are caused by something else.  More information here. 

*DAILY UPDATES: Total Croatia News provides LIVE daily updates on the coronavirus epidemic here. An archive of articles can be found here.

Split Patent in Quarantine Awaiting Test Results

The diagnosis is not yet known, but given that he has recently been to China, he has been isolated as a preventive measure. All necessary examinations have been performed, and he will remain separate from the other patients until the results of the findings.

He is currently in the infectious ward in Split. In the event of a positive finding, he will be transferred to the Zagreb hospital Dr. Fran Mihaljević.

Osijek Patient Does Not Have Coronavirus

Subsequent coronavirus tests showed that the 26-year-old Đakovo resident hospitalized in Osijek KBC after returning from China did not contract the coronavirus, according to Index on February 2, 2020.

Alemka Markotić, Director of the Infectious Diseases Clinic Fran Mihaljević, confirmed for the HRT Dnevnik that the tests on a patient in isolation in Osijek for suspected coronavirus showed that the patient did not suffer from the virus.

Test Findings Sent to Center in Berlin

"Yesterday and today we worked on testing blood and the upper respiratory tract. In one test, some of these samples were slightly positive and the other, which we consider to be affirmative, was completely negative both yesterday and today. We are obliged to send a sample for further confirmation to reference centers. The patient is not coughing and is in good general condition. He will probably be under some medical supervision unless the development of the disease is seen," said Markotić.

She confirmed that their clinic had received a test from Berlin three days ago. She explained that coronavirus is quite similar in behavior and molecular characteristics to SARS, but it also differs in many ways and is apparently spreading much faster. She said that it was difficult to distinguish symptoms from the flu, but that coronavirus complicates pneumonia, while that is not the case with flu.

Expects That Coronavirus Will Last Until Spring

Asked if she knew how long the epidemic would last, she replied that she did not know the answer to that question, adding that the virus was spreading by droplet and that it was expected that with the onset of spring the virus should disappear.

A 26-year-old Đakovo resident was hospitalized in Osijek KBC on Saturday on the tenth day after his return from China and he reported a temperature of 38 degrees, after which he was isolated. The rules of the profession dictate that every patient who comes from China must be treated in this manner and have respiratory problems or fever for two to ten days.

*DAILY UPDATES: Total Croatia News provides LIVE daily updates on the coronavirus epidemic here. An archive of articles can be found here.

A British traveler attending a bachelor party in Croatia suffered severe injuries after jumping off a catamaran.

A staffing boost for the hospitals in Split. 

A successful juggling of scarce resources at Split hospital.