Correction to: Twenty-five years on: revisiting Bosnia and Herzegovina after implementation of a family medicine development program.

Following publication of the original article [1], the authors opted to correct the name of co-author Amra Zalihic from Zahilic to Zalihic. The original article has been corrected.

Twenty-five years on: revisiting Bosnia and Herzegovina after implementation of a family medicine development program.

BACKGROUND: The wars that ravaged the former Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia in the 1990's resulted in the near destruction of the healthcare system, including education of medical students and the training of specialist physicians. In the latter stages of the war, inspired by Family Medicine programs in countries such as Canada, plans to rebuild a new system founded on a strong primary care model emerged. Over the next fifteen years, the Queen's University Family Medicine Development Program in Bosnia and Herzegovina played an instrumental role in rebuilding the primary care system through educational initiatives at the undergraduate, residency, Masters, PhD, and continuing professional development levels. Changes were supported by new laws and regulations to insure sustainability. This study revisited Bosnia and Herzegovina (B-H) 8-years after the end of the program to explore the impact of initiatives through understanding the perspectives and experiences of individuals at all levels of the primary care system from students, deans of medical schools, Family Medicine residents, practicing physicians, Health Center Directors and Association Leaders. METHODS: Qualitative exploratory design using purposeful sampling. Semi-structured interviews and focus groups with key informants were conducted in English or with an interpreter as needed and audiotaped. Transcripts and field notes were analyzed using an interpretative phenomenological approach to identify major themes and subthemes. RESULTS: Overall, 118 participants were interviewed. Three major themes and 9 subthemes were identified including (1) The Development of Family Medicine Education, (subthemes: establishment of departments of family medicine, undergraduate medical curriculum change), (2) Family Medicine as a Discipline (Family Medicine specialization, academic development, and Family Medicine Associations), and (3) Health Care System Issues (continuity of care, comprehensiveness of care, practice organization and health human resources). CONCLUSIONS: Despite the impact of years of war and the challenges of a complex and unstable postwar environment, initiatives introduced by the Queen's Program succeeded in establishing sustainable changes, allowing Family Medicine in B-H to continue to adapt without abandoning its strong foundations. Despite the success of the program, the undervaluing of Primary Care from a human resource and health finance perspective presents ongoing threats to the system.

Assessment of physical activity and body weight among medical students in Banja Luka, Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Aim To assess obesity and weekly physical activity among medical students at the University of Banja Luka, Bosnia and Herzegovina, related to gender and years of study profile. Methods This is a prospective, descriptive study conducted among the student population across all six years, comprised of a validated survey instrument Youth Risk Behaviour Survey Questionnaires. The study was approved by the Ethics Committee of the School of Medicine and carried out as an anonymous survey, during the winter semester of the academic year 2017/2018. Results Of the total 601 students, the study included 543 students, 327 (60.2%) females and 216 (39.8%) males. The majority of students 337 (62.1%) had normal weight, and 13 (2.4%) had class 1 obesity. Most female students, 255 (75.7%) had normal weight, while 132 (61.1%) males were overweight. Physical inactivity was found among 349 (64.3%) students; 11 (2%) exercised regularly twice a week and 16 (2.9%) exercised five times a week. Conclusion This study should help better understanding and identifying the onset of obesity among the students of the School of Medicine in Banja Luka and promote awareness of the obesity problem among them that would have benefit for health of this population group.

Influence of age and length of service on the level of stress and burnout syndrome.

INTRODUCTION: The burnout syndrome is a response to chronic emotional and interpersonal stressors which are related to workplace. Medicine is one of the professions at the greatest risk of suffering from burnout syndrome. The aim of this study was to assess the presence of stress and burnout syndrome in relation with age and length of service in the family medicine physicians in the Republic of Srpska. MATERIAL AND METHODS: The study was carried out on the basis of a questionnaire survey among family medicine physicians in seven Primary Health Care Centres in the Republic of Srpska from February 1st to April 30th 2010. The participants fulfilled the questionnaire for self-assessment of stress level and the Maslach Burnout Inventory, which were amended with data regarding age, sex, length of service and educational and vocational level. RESULTS: The study included 199 (83.3%) female and 40 (16.7%) male participants. The physicians aged over 46 years and with the length of service over 21 years had statistically significant higher level of stress and emotional exhaustion than younger participants and participants with shorter length of service. CONCLUSION: Age and length of service have important influence on the level of stress and burnout syndrome: the older the physicians and the higher the length of service the higher the level of stress and the higher the risk of burnout syndrome.