The Qendra Klinike Universitare e Kosovës (UCCK) is facing a significant shortage of anesthesiologists, creating serious challenges for the normal functioning of operating rooms and intensive care services.
According to anesthesiologist Ismet Jusufi, the Clinic of Anesthesiology and Intensive Care is the second-largest clinic within UCCK. It covers 42 operating rooms, six non-operative diagnostic and therapeutic rooms requiring anesthesiology support, the Central Intensive Care Unit with 21 beds, the Cardiac Surgery Intensive Care Unit with 10 beds, two semi-intensive care units, and six recovery rooms.
Jusufi explained that the Clinic of Anesthesiology collaborates with more than 70% of other clinics, mainly by providing essential supportive services.
Currently, 45 anesthesiologists are officially employed. However, two are battling malignant illnesses and one contract expires on March 3, 2026, effectively reducing the active workforce to 42 specialists.
He emphasized that this makes the clinic highly vulnerable, particularly when staff take annual or medical leave. Based on calculations, around 15% of the workforce is continuously on annual or medical leave, reducing the effective number of available anesthesiologists to approximately 35–36 at any given time.
According to Jusufi, the optimal and recommended number needed to meet the demands of all surgical clinics is around 120 anesthesiologists.
The staff shortage directly affects waiting lists and leads to postponed surgeries. Nevertheless, Jusufi noted that despite the limited workforce, the clinic performs an impressive workload of approximately 20,000 operative and non-operative procedures annually.
Regarding departures from the public sector, Jusufi confirmed that anesthesiologists are continuously moving to the private sector, mainly for economic reasons, as salaries are significantly higher and working conditions are better.
As a measure to improve the situation, he announced that 25 new specialists are expected to be engaged soon in the public healthcare system, with a considerable number likely to join UCCK. While regional hospitals also have staffing needs, their recruitment is expected to ease the shortage and improve service delivery.