New COVID Hospital in Belgrade

Batajnica hospital (BETAPHOTO/KANCELARIJA ZA SARADNJU SA MEDIJIMA VLADE SRBIJE/SLOBODAN MILJEVIC/DS)

Serbian Prime Minister Ana Brnabic has said that Belgraders infected with the novel coronavirus would be rerouted to a hospital in Batajnica, opened on Dec. 4, instead of smaller towns in Serbia as before.

Before the hospital, which will begin to admit patients in the afternoon, had thrown open its doors, Brnabic told the Serbian Broadcasting Corporation that its opening came at the right time to relieve the health care system of Serbia.

"Our health care system will come out of the corona crisis stronger. We will come out with two brand new hospitals -- in Belgrade and Krusevac, with a large number of newly employed doctors, and we'll have all new equipment that we never had before," she said.

Brnabic said the Batajnica hospital would have more than 1,600 health care workers, and announced that a new hospital in Krusevac should be completed by Dec. 15.

The Batajnica hospital has 930 beds, 250 of which in intensive care, with ventilators, oxygen and state-of-the-art equipment, the Serbian Broadcasting Corporation reported. Ground was broken four months ago and the hospital will have nine large units with 30 to 40 beds.

On the topic of COVID-19 vaccines, Brnabic said 20 Russian Sputnik V vaccines had arrived in Serbia for testing, and added that a contract would be signed with Pfizer on buying its vaccine on Dec. 7.