Contact tracing not yet started after death in Sarajevo

By: Amra Vrabac

A private company in Sarajevo and its employees are one of the five clusters in Sarajevo Canton regarding coronavirus, where the deceased woman A.K. (52) worked, who was found to be infected after her death.

The employees of A.K.'s company last saw her on Friday, March 13, when working from home was arranged. By Sunday, the unfortunate woman developed a high fever and other symptoms indicative of coronavirus. She and her daughter unsuccessfully tried to get help and approval to be tested for coronavirus. The woman's agony lasted for days. She was admitted to the Hrasnica clinic multiple times, where she was told she had severe bronchitis. She also sought help at the Health Center, where she was brought in lifeless on March 24, when her death was pronounced. The Hrasnica clinic is closed, and about twenty employees at the Health Center are in isolation.

Although the Sarajevo Canton Crisis Staff confirmed that this company is a new cluster and that all contacts are being checked, as Patria has learned, none of the employees living in Sarajevo have been tested yet. Only an employee living in the Republika Srpska entity has been tested. This is another proof of the lack of seriousness of the epidemiological service in Sarajevo Canton and the authorities. Republika Srpska changed its strategy several days ago and started mass testing.

It should also be noted that the deceased woman's daughter tested positive for coronavirus, even though more than 24 hours passed before she was tested.

The owners and employees of this company promptly contacted the responsible epidemiologists after the loss of their colleague, and they were ordered to isolate or self-isolate, but whether and when they will be tested is still unknown. For now, they are in constant contact with epidemiologists.

And it's not just the 23 employees, but also their families and contacts in recent days. Regardless of the fact that their last contact with their colleague, who developed symptoms on Sunday, March 15, was on March 13, it is clear that there is a fear that there may be more infected individuals.

There are five clusters in Sarajevo Canton, as confirmed by Aida Pilav, president of the Sarajevo Canton Crisis Staff, and their health status is being monitored.

“Testing has intensified, clusters are being monitored, and health status is being monitored. Testing is done at specific moments of symptom development, such as respiratory problems and fever. We monitor changes in health status. In accordance with professional and scientific doctrine, we emphasize that testing on demand will not be performed as negative results may be obtained,” said Pilav.

We might believe Pilav that such a procedure is necessary and valid if we hadn't unfortunately had a death where the patient did not receive adequate help because she did not meet the "epidemiological questionnaire" criteria, despite having all the symptoms of coronavirus. The second case could also have ended fatally with another woman from the Ilidža area if she had not been tested at the last minute and then admitted to the clinic in Podhrastovi, where she was stabilized.

We are aware that there are not enough epidemiologists in Sarajevo Canton and that they are exhausted because preparations and the fight against coronavirus have been ongoing for two full months. It would be honest for the public to be informed about the cases in Sarajevo Canton in a timely and truthful manner. The only advice cannot be to adhere to the prescribed measures and stay at home. Fear has spread among people. Perhaps even more than it should.

The Patria News Agency sends questions to the Sarajevo Canton Government and the Sarajevo Canton Crisis Staff every day regarding this cluster, but we have not received a clear and precise answer. For the public interest, someone will have to answer these questions. Even if there were not enough tests, although they assure us that we have a "sufficient" and "solid" number, with the 1,000 tests received by the University Clinical Center Sarajevo today, it is high time to start mass testing as announced by Pilav.

For the public, we are publishing the questions:

1. Was the testing of the woman in Sarajevo who died on March 24, 2020, refused?

2. Did the daughter claim to have been to Italy in order to get tested?

3. Why was coronavirus testing not performed, and what message is being sent to citizens whom you call for discipline and adherence to measures, while on the other hand, we do not have sufficient capacity to respond to citizens' calls, and only a few cases have been recorded in Sarajevo?

4. Has the testing of people from the cluster of the private company where the deceased woman from Ilidža worked begun, and have the contacts of the deceased woman's daughter with someone from risk areas been identified?