Pharmacology (medical), Health Policy, Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health
40
Scopus Publications
Scopus Publications
Palliative Care during COVID-19 Pandemic: Practical Recommendations from Literature Evidence Scepan Z. Sinanovic, Olivera Z. Milovanovic, Tanja T. Prodovic, Biljana Jakovljevic, Vladislava Stojic, et al. Experimental and Applied Biomedical Research Eabr, 2026 COVID-19 patients incidence rate is constantly expanding worldwide and the risk of mortality is extremely high among elderly population and those with acute or cronic disease and comorbidities. The pandemic caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus has strongly affected the functioning of healthcare networks around the world and changed many palliative care units in healthcare institutions into covid patients treatment units. Palliative care in many countries has insufficient number of resources and suitable legal and regulatory frameworks in order to guarantee the integration in the system in pandemic. Palliative care deals with the ways to prevent diseases and how to treat some serious medical sequeae resulting from any kind of disease that in a serious way affects the quality of life. The basic postulate of palliative treatment include providing immediate decrease or complete elimination of somatic symptoms, providing support psychological, spiritual and ensuring empathic care for both the patient and the family. They all have come into focus during a pandemic. Grown-ups and children requiring palliative care, especially in low and countries with lower-middle income, oftentimes have to face with difficulties and problems in approaching necessary services. Society has recognized their vulnerability during COVID-19 pandemic. The situation has been aggravated by their incompetence to have an approach to all necessary health accomodation, treatments, drugs and backing to manage hazardous diseases and medical agony. For all the above, palliative care is to be consolidated into national and international plans in response to COVID-19. It is expected that pandemic due to COVID-19 will be a longlasting health problem, which emphaises the necessity to simultaneously health care for patients sensitive to COVID-19 and other patients. This obliges the medical professionals to constantly increase their knowledge by searching, relevant literature and applying practical recommendations and guidelines.
ONLINE TEACHING AND LEARNING IN BIOMEDICAL SCIENCES: STUDENTS’ AND STAFF’ ATTITUDES AND EXPERIENCES ON THE NEW EDUCATIONAL ENVIRONMENT IMPOSED BY THE COVID 19 OUTBREAK Tamara Nikolic Turnic, Ljiljana Tasic, Vladimir Jakovljevic, Marko Folic, Milan Zaric, et al. Experimental and Applied Biomedical Research Eabr, 2024 The aim of this pilot study is a preliminary evaluation of previous models / modalities of online teaching at the Faculty of Medical Sciences in Serbia and to examine the attitudes of students and academic staff about education during the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as their previous experiences. The research was designed as an observational qualitative epidemiological study which was conducted on a population of students and academics staff at the Faculty of biomedical sciences, University of Kragujevac during the pandemic of SARS-CoV-2 infection in Serbia. The first phase is a pilot study which included 332 participants performed between December 2020 and January 2021. The pilot study questionnaire is formed for the purposes of the research and consists of 17 closed-ended questions with graduated answers. Students and academic staff completed the questionnaire through an online learning platform in all environments and from all electronic devices. The importance of this study is reflected in the fact that it provides detailed and valid data that can serve the purpose of improving the efficiency of online teaching at the faculties of medical sciences in Serbia In general, the results of our study indicate that in addition to great inexperience, both students and academic staff cope well during online education and the changed environment and learning conditions despite all the difficulties.
Evaluation of Nasal Decongestants by Literature Review Stasa Petkovic, Ivana Maletic, Sonja Djuric, Ninoslava Dragutinovic, Olivera Milovanovic Experimental and Applied Biomedical Research Eabr, 2024 Over-the-counter drugs are medicines that are available to consumers without a prescription. The most common оver - the-counter preparations in self - medication are nasal decongestants that can be used systemically or locally in the form of drops or nasal sprays. The most common indications for nasal decongestants are viral infections and allergic conditions in order to alleviate the symptoms so it is necessary to inform the users about the type of drug, the active substance it contains and the correct dosage regimen. Given their availability and the prevailing safety precaution, these preparations can lead to numerous prolonged conditions and complications. The mechanism of action of nasal decongestants is based on the reduction of blood vessels’ swelling in the nose, which helps the opening of the airway. As a result, most nasal decongestants cause vasoconstriction (narrowing of blood vessels). There are nasal decongestants that block histamine and have a good effect on people who suffer from seasonal allergies. Availability (free sale) and prolonged use of the decongestant lead to a decrease in the sensitivity of the alpha receptor, which leads to the need to increase the dose at shorter time intervals to achieve the same effect. As a consequence, patients use excessive, uncontrolled doses of nasal decongestants, which is a public problem and warns of the necessity of identification and the taking of measures to prevent their uncontrolled procurement and use.
Job satisfaction of healthcare professionals in palliative care departments and factors affecting job satisfaction during the COVID-19 pandemic Scepan Sinanovic, Tatjana Kilibarda, Sasa Bubanj, Tanja Prodovic, Srecko Potic, et al. Vojnosanitetski Pregled, 2024 Background/Aim. The COVID-19 pandemic had a significant impact on the healthcare system, particularly healthcare providers such as nurses/medical technicians, who were obliged to adhere to strict procedures and manage their time effectively during shifts. The aim of this study was to identify internal strengths, weaknesses, threats, and challenges in palliative care management during the C OVID-19 pandemic from the perspective of nurses/medical technicians. Methods. A cross-sectional study was conducted on a 100% sample of nurses/medical technicians working in hospital-based palliative care in two clinics in Belgrade (47 respondents in total). The research instrument was a Questionnaire on Employee Satisfaction. The survey was conducted during September and October 2022. Results. Assessing the job satisfaction of nurses/ medical technicians revealed moderate job satisfaction (3.43), which was mostly influenced by appropriate financial compensation and the implementation of measures to prevent and control the spread of the COVID-19 infection. The dimensions of management that were significantly related to respondents? satisfaction were motivation and adequacy of hygienic conditions and measures to control COVID-19 (?2 = 62.83, p = 0.004 and ?2 = 36.42, p = 0.006, respectively). Conclusion. Nurses/medical technicians who experience stress at work in regular conditions tend to react the same way in different conditions, such as those related to COVID-19 infection. The most difficult challenge that the management faces is the recognition of the importance of the work of nurses/medical technicians by the community. Therefore, it is vital to respect and support the most important professional values of nurses/medical technicians, such as valuable achievements, the importance of professional challenges, personal growth and development, and independence in practice.
Treatment of Ulcerative Colitis: Impact on Platelet Aggregation Sasa Peric, Zeljko Todorovic, Nebojsa Zdravkovic, Andjela Gogic, Stefan Simovic, et al. Medicina Lithuania, 2023 Background and Objectives: Ulcerative colitis is chronic and/or progressive inflammation of the colorectal mucosa and submucosa and represents one of two major inflammatory bowel diseases. Ulcerative colitis has been associated with increased risk of arteriosus and venous thrombosis. There are numerous factors responsible for this; one of them is platelet activation and aggregation. The objective of our study was to determine if different treatment options for ulcerative colitis have an impact on platelet aggregation. Materials and Methods: This research was a prospective, observational study and included 94 newly diagnosed patients with UC divided into four treatment groups. For all patients, we measured platelet aggregability by using an impedance aggregometry method with a multiplate analyzer before and after treatment with infliximab, adalimumab, vedolizumab and azathioprine. A Paired Samples t test was performed in order to determine the difference in platelet aggregability before and after a certain therapy, since the data followed a normal distribution. Taking into account the impact of some clinical characteristics, multiple linear regression was conducted for the purpose of estimating the effect of therapy on the level of reduction in platelet aggregability. Results: All four drugs significantly reduced platelet aggregability. After we excluded the influence of clinical and endoscopic scores and disease localization on the results, we found that infliximab had the greatest anti-platelet activity. Conclusions: In addition to the well-known traditional risk factors for atherosclerosis, activation and aggregation of platelets play a significant role in the development of arterial thrombosis, and our results suggested that therapy use for the treatment of UC, especially infliximab, can have a great impact on cardiovascular morbidity and mortality by decreasing platelet aggregability.
Analysis of Correlation between the Socioeconomic Environment and Level of Nutrition in the Population of Serbia: A Part of the National Survey Mladen Grujicic, Marija Sekulic, Milos Stepovic, Natasa Zdravkovic, Vladan Markovic, et al. Sustainability Switzerland, 2023 Being overweight is one of the leading health problems of the 21st century. In different parts of Europe, different overweight statuses are noted. The aim of this study was to explore the correlation between the socioeconomic environment and the level of nutrition in the Serbian population. This research is part of the fourth national survey of the health of the population of Serbia. It was conducted as a descriptive, cross-sectional study. For the purposes of this research, the adult population over the age of 20 was included, and 12,439 respondents were analyzed. The nutritional status was assessed by the body mass index value—BMI. In order to investigate the differences between groups, the chi-squared test was used. The risk of being overweight was evaluated by calculating the odds ratio value, using univariate and multivariate regression. The prevalence of obesity was higher in females than in males, but pre-obesity was more common among male respondents. Males in the age category 55–64 years old, married, employed, with a higher level of education and material status were more likely to be overweight. As for the females, being overweight was most common among unemployed and economically inactive respondents, widowed/divorced, aged 65–74, with a primary school educational level and low material status. The level of nutrition is significantly associated with the socioeconomic environment.
Challenges in Procedural Sedation and Analgesia Šćepan Sinanović, Tanja Prodović, Olivera Milovanović, Saša Bubanj, Miljan Krstović, et al. Acta Facultatis Medicae Naissensis, 2023 Introduction. There are several definitions given by various anesthesiology professional organizations that explain the term procedural sedation and analgesia (PSA). The International Committee for the Advancement of PSA has defined procedural sedation as the use of anxiolytics, sedatives, hypnotics, analgesics and/or dissociative drugs to alleviate anxiety, pain and/or movement. These agents are used to facilitate the attainment of amnesia or to reduce the consciousness and/or comfort and safety of the patient during diagnostic or therapeutic procedures. The first guidelines for sedation are based on the mandatory signing of informed consent, monitoring and measuring of vital parameters, implementing a fasting regimen before sedation, possessing the skills to establish and maintain the airway, and resuscitation measures. Since PSA is most often used outside the operating room, this type of anesthesia activity is known as NORA (Non-Operating Room Anesthesia Care). Conclusion. Preprocedural evaluation and preparation, periprocedural management, monitoring and care of postprocedural recovery from PSA is similar to those of general or regional anesthesia. In conclusion, a number of logistical and practical difficulties should be noted, such as the availability of medicines and appropriate staff training, as well as the application of global guidelines on PSA.
Predictors of Non-Adherence to Medications in Hypertensive Patients Iranian Journal of Public Health, 2023
Social support score in patients with malignant diseases—with sociodemographic and medical characteristics Snezana Corovic, Veroljub Vucic, Olgica Mihaljevic, Jelena Djordjevic, Sofija Colovic, et al. Frontiers in Psychology, 2023 IntroductionSocial support as a complex construct has a positive influence not only on a patient’s condition but also on the process of the patient’s emotional adjustment to cancer. The goal of this study is to investigate aspects of the level of social support in oncology patients and its interconnection with sociodemographic and medical variables.MethodThe study was conducted as a prospective observational study in 2020, including 250 patients aged 19 and over, both sexes, with a diagnosis of oncological disease. The research was conducted in the Department of General Medicine of the Health Center Trstenik, Central Serbia, after approval by the Ethics Committee of the Health Center Trstenik, Central Serbia. A social support assessment questionnaire (Oslo-3 Social Support Scale) was used as a research instrument.ResultsData collected from the entire study population showed that bad social support was present in almost 90% of cases. Univariate and multivariate regression analysis showed a statistically significant influence of the following variables on the bad social support: education level, activity limitation, difficulties in performing daily activities, the impact of pain on the performance of activities, the need for additional help with activity, the need for help at home, unfulfilled needs for health care, means of information, anxiety score and depression score.ConclusionInterventions to increase social support may be important for enhancing mental health and quality of life in cancer patients.
Resource Use and Costs Related to Hematological Complications of Chemotherapy: Cost of Illness Study Based on Data from Balkan Country with Recent History of Socioeconomic Transition Iranian Journal of Public Health, 2022
Serbia Mihajlo Jakovljevic, Mirjana Jovanovic, Olivera Milovanovic, Svetlana Radevic Extended Working Life Policies International Gender and Health Perspectives, 2020
Brics vs. N-11: Population aging and health expenditures in global emerging markets-historicals records and un forecasts 1975 - 2025 Health Economics and Policy Challenges in Global Emerging Markets, 2016
Cutaneous effects of sea buckthorn oil emulsion Mihailo Kipic, Snezana Cupara, Vesna Jacevic, Ana Radovanovic, Olivera Milovanovic Serbian Journal of Experimental and Clinical Research, 2014
Costs differences among monoclonal antibodies-based first-line oncology cancer protocols for breast cancer, colorectal carcinoma and non-Hodgkin's lymphoma Journal of B U on, 2014
