ПАРТИЗАНСКЕ БОЛНИЦЕ НА КОЗАРИ

The beginning of World War II found Bosnia and Herzegovina burdened by the difficult conditions caused by the previous great and exhausting war. Since the two world wars occurred within a relatively short time span, the population had no time to recover from the consequences of the first before the second began.  In a country weighed down by a backward economy and an underdeveloped agrarian and cultural environment, the impoverished and exhausted population was vulnerable to various diseases. Harsh living conditions, poor nutrition, inadequate housing, and other factors contributed to the spread of diseases such as typhoid fever, epidemic typhus, diphtheria, dysentery, tuberculosis, venereal diseases (including endemic syphilis), malaria, and scabies. Mental illnesses were also common, often resulting from alcoholism or endemic syphilis.

In addition, there was a shortage of healthcare facilities and medical personnel. This issue affected the entire Kingdom of Yugoslavia. At the beginning of the 1930s, the Kingdom had only 24,000 hospital beds, while the actual need was about three times greater. In 1933, the Vrbas Banovina had 102 doctors: 32 were located in the Banja Luka district, five each in the districts of Bosanska Gradiška, Bosanski Novi, and Prijedor, and two in the Bosanska Dubica district. By 1938, the number of doctors had increased to 118, yet Vrbas Banovina still ranked last in the Kingdom of Yugoslavia in terms of physician availability.

In the second half of the 1930s, as hospital construction began across the Banovina, new facilities were also established in Prijedor, Bosanska Dubica, and Bosanska Gradiška. Most healthcare institutions were concentrated in larger towns, while most villages lacked doctors. This was a widespread issue throughout the Kingdom of Yugoslavia: out of 5,000 doctors, only 800–1,000 lived in rural areas. By the end of 1932, there were only 30 outpatient clinics in the villages of Vrbas Banovina. Such village clinics existed in the Kozara area in: Orahova and Turjak (Bosanska Gradiška district, 24 km and 15 km from the district center), Slabinja (Bosanska Kostajnica district, 13 km from the center), Kozarac, Ljubija, and Omarska (Prijedor district, 12 km, 22 km, and 25 km away).

To receive medical care, villagers had to travel to the city, or wait for a doctor to visit—often only once a month, or even less frequently. Access to medicine was also limited, as it required traveling to town. As a result, people primarily relied on so-called folk remedies, such as teas, herbs, and various preparations made from medicinal plants. These remedies were largely ineffective against more serious illnesses.

The Banovina made great efforts to educate the population and raise public health and cultural awareness. Authorities supervised water quality, conducted vaccinations, and carried out disinfection and pest control measures. Special attention was given to educating women, mothers, and children. Efforts were also made to replace traditional childbirth practices and improve care for pregnant women, new mothers, and children. The first institutions dedicated to child health protection were established in 1922, and by 1933, there were already 45 counseling centers and 50 polyclinics in operation. However, the development and improvement of all aspects of life were hindered by the difficult economic situation.

Already in a weakened state, the country was further affected by the outbreak of World War II. The existing medical personnel were insufficient to meet the demands of wartime. For comparison, in the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia during the 1970s, there were 274 hospitals with around 118,000 beds; 3,684 outpatient clinics; 565 specialist polyclinics; 2,382 dental clinics; 447 tuberculosis dispensaries; 1,400 women’s dispensaries and counseling centers; 1,400 pediatric dispensaries; and nearly 600 school clinics and outpatient units. At that time, Yugoslavia had more than 25,000 doctors and over 3,800 pharmacists, meaning there were about 840 patients per doctor. Although the number of healthcare facilities and workers had increased, a significant gap remained between the availability of doctors and healthcare services in rural versus urban areas.

The medical service within the Partisan units developed in parallel with the growth of the National Liberation War, the evolving demands of the war, and the formation of new units. Shortly after the uprising began—or even before it fully escalated, following the first battles—it became clear that there was a need to care for the wounded, which necessitated the establishment of hospitals. It should be noted that these early Partisan hospitals—and many of those established later—were not hospitals in the conventional sense. A hospital was considered any improvised facility providing care for the wounded.

The first hospitals were often established in private homes, primarily in villages below Mount Kozara, where the enemy had difficulty accessing them. They were created out of necessity, during or after combat operations, usually in makeshift conditions and often without doctors, staffed instead by personnel trained in short courses. Despite these shortcomings, they played a crucial role and made a significant contribution to the struggle.

Due to the dangers of wartime operations, these hospitals frequently changed locations and, consequently, their names. During the German-Croatian offensive on Kozara in the summer of 1942, some were disbanded and merged with other hospitals in safer areas. After some time, they were re-established when the wartime conditions required it.