No. 07-00-583/2016-02  Date: 10.4.2017.

OPINION

Opinion was issued in proceeding upon complaint filed by V.S. on behalf of B.J. from K. against Institute for urgent medical assistance Kragujevac, because of discrimination of children. It was stated in complaint that two-year old child B.J. was suffocating but the service of Institute for urgent medical assistance Kragujevac refused to come, rather they recommended that she bring her child by car or  taxi for examination, stating that Emergency does not go out to the field because of children. Director of Institute for urgent medical assistance Kragujevac stated in his statement that Institute does not differentiate based on someone’s age; that Institute’s teams do go to the field because of children patients; that in the last year Institute had 632 field interventions because of children patients and 8694 in-house examinations and that 23 children were taken care of on that particular night. He also stated that he doesn’t deny that nurse was responsible because of non-professional reaction that caused Institute for urgent medical assistance Kragujevac to propose several measures, but he categoricaly rejected accusation of discrimination. During the proceeding, Commissioner for the Protection of Equality analyzed whether the age of juvenile person was a decisive reason for team of Institute for urgent medical assistance Kragujevac to refuse on-site medical assistance, after the phone call made by mother of an underaged child. After analyzing facts and circumstances, it was not determined that the reason for not going out to the field was the personal characteristic of a patient – age, and by these means the opinion was issued that in this case it was not determined that Institute for urgent medical assistance Kragujevac violated provisions that prohibit discrimination, which does not mean that other violation of rights did not occure in acting of Institute for urgent medical assistance Kragujevac, that are not within the scope of authority of the Commissioner for the Protection of Equality.

Commissioner for the Protection of Equality

Brankica Janković

Complaint by B.J. against Institute for urgent medical assistance because of discrimination on grounds of age in area of health care