Doctors oppose dismissal of Dr. Ismet Gavrankapetanović, reject offer from Dr. Sebija Izetbegović

Several doctors from the Clinic for Orthopedics and Traumatology of the Clinical Center of the University of Sarajevo have refused to accept the position of head of this department, after the announcement that management would dismiss Professor Ismet Gavrankapetanović from that position. They explained that they oppose imposed decisions regarding the organization and work of the Clinic.

At least three doctors from the Clinic for Orthopedics and Traumatology were offered by the manager of KCUS, Dr. Sebija Izetbegović, to replace one of the leading European orthopedists, Dr. Gavrankapetanović, as head of this clinic at the largest healthcare institution in the country, but they refused, reports the Patria agency.

Information about the possible dismissal of Dr. Gavrankapetanović leaked to the public several days earlier, which sparked strong reactions due to the domestic and international reputation that Dr. Gavrankapetanović enjoys, but KCUS called the dismissal a 'rumor'. Two days later, it turned out that the announcements about the dismissal of Dr. Gavrankapetanović were not rumors, but the actual goal of KCUS manager Dr. Izetbegović.

The doctors who opposed the dismissal of Dr. Gavrankapetanović are: prim. dr. Mirza Biščević, doc. dr. Đemil Omerović, mr.sci.dr. Senad Maksić, mr.sci.dr. Semin Bećirbegović, prim. dr. Amir Ahmetović, prim. mr. sci. dr. Husein Čamo, dr. Fahrudin Helać, dr. Hasan Tanović, dr. Mehmed Jamakosmanović, dr. Elvir Baždar, dr. Ehlimana Hadžić-Agović, dr. Edin Kulenović, prim. dr. Dario Ivanišević, doc. dr. Fuad Džanković, dr. sci Hadžan Konjo.

“We, the undersigned specialists of the Clinic for Orthopedics and Traumatology, give our support to the head of the Clinic, Prof. Dr. Ismet Gavrankapetanović, and strongly oppose the imposed decisions regarding the organization and work of our Clinic,” states the letter sent to the management of KCUS.

Dr. Izetbegović came to the head of KCUS in January 2016, due to the strong political support she has from the ruling SDA. Izetbegović is the wife of the president of SDA and a member of the Presidency of BiH from the Bosniak people, Bakir Izetbegović.

In just a few months following her appointment, contracts were terminated, or some of the leading doctors who had previously worked at Koševo left on their own. Dr. Izetbegović justifies her radical moves by claiming that some doctors did not work sufficiently well and often abused their position. Doctors complain about pressure from the new management.

An audio recording has also leaked to the public in which Dr. Izetbegović is heard threatening one of the employees at KCUS that she will rip out his larynx.

“If I hear you take my name in vain once more, you will remember me for the rest of your life,” Sebija Izetbegović warned that man.

When asked by Patria agency journalists about the reasons for the dismissal of Dr. Gavrankapetanović, which is being discussed, KCUS declined to comment.

Dr. Ismet Gavrankapetanović graduated from the Faculty of Medicine in Sarajevo in 1986. He defended his doctoral thesis in 1998. He is a member of numerous domestic and international medical associations, including the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons, a member of the Royal College of Surgeons of London, the British Orthopedic Association, the European Society for Sports Traumatology, Knee Surgery and Arthroscopy, a member of the British Elbow and Shoulder Surgeons Association...