Two incidents were reported yesterday at the Mother Teresa clinic in Skopje, in front of the Pulmonary Clinic. Police said it is investigating the physical assaults that in one case included an employee of the clinic, and media outlets are reporting that the attacks were linked with the lack of room in the clinic – families with loved ones sick with Covid-19 were desperate to have patients admitted to the clinic, and also entered without wearing masks.

The Skopje clinics, which offer best odds of survival to the serious Covid-19 cases, are full to the brim with the growing spike in new cases. The Infectious Diseases clinic now cares for 162 patients – 137 of them reciving supplemental oxygen – and is operating at full capacity. The 8th of September clinic has 79 patients, three of whom are on mechanical ventilation. The Pulmonary Clinic, which was turned into an improvised Covid ward, has 150 patients, while the also converted old Tuberculosis Clinic has 50 patients. At the Kozle children’s hospital there are 26 adults and 10 children. General hospitals across the country have over 530 patients in their Covid wards.