Background: On 23 July 2022, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared the mpox multi-country outbreak as a Public Health Emergency of International Concern. This study aimed to identify the epidemiological and clinical characteristics of confirmed mpox cases reported in Serbia in 2022. Methods: The mpox WHO case definition was used. Incidence rates (IRs) and incidence rate ratios (IRRs) by age groups and nomenclature of territorial units for statistics level 3 (NUTS-3) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated. Results: Between June and October 2022, 43 laboratory-confirmed cases were reported. All were unvaccinated males, with the mean age of 34 (±7.4) years. Out of the total, 72.1% cases were men who have sex with men (MSM), who reported sexual intercourse either with multiple or unknown partners (p < 0.01). Fifteen cases (34.9%) lived with HIV, mostly in the 30–39 age group (p = 0.023). People living in Belgrade City NUTS-3 were six times more likely to become infected compared to South Backa citizens (IRR: 6.03, 95% CI: 1.47–25.53). Conclusions: In Serbia, mpox mainly affected MSM aged 30–39 and living in urban areas. Health promotion and vaccine implementation should be prioritized in populations with a higher risk.

Breast cancer (BC) is the most commonly diagnosed malignancy in female population. Mammography screening (sMG) is, as a public health intervention in the context of BC, considered a golden standard for its early detection within the population of asymptomatic women between 50 and 70 years of age. Organised BC programme (the Programme) was established in 2013 in the Republic of Serbia, marking the transition from the opportune to the population based screening model. The aim of this study was to analyse the data on the Programme implementation, to gain insight into the development and provision of its services in the Republic of Serbia, as well as the specific human and technical capacities required for its sustained delivery. Aggregated yearly reports of the Cancer screening office of the IPHS "Dr Milan Jovanovic Batut" were used as the primary data source. Between 2013 and 2023, a total of 445,261 screening mammography examinations were conducted in primary healthcare centres and mobile mammography units. During the observed period on average one third (30.1%) of performed sMGs within the Programme were conducted through the mobile mammography units, while an increasing trend of participating healthcare institutions as well as the human and technical capacities on the whole was noticed. The results of this analysis aim to serve as a basis for future, more comprehensive research, which would explore regional disparities in coverage and performance indicators for BC screening, with the purpose of updating data available to the wider academic community on the topic as well as the future improvements of the Programme.

The frequency of mobile phone (MP) use and the way students use them in school vary depending on the level of education, i.e., the age of the student, but also on the school, i.e., how it regulates its use. Many teachers stimulate the use of MPs during class, but by directing these activities to the topic being taught, knowing that an MP is an integral part of school supplies for a "digital native", both outside and inside the school. The purpose of this research was to determine the extent to which students used mobile phones in class and what their attitude was to the use of MPs during school activities and its impact on school performance. The research was designed as a cross-sectional study. The respondents were students of the Secondary Medical School in Belgrade, Zvezdara and represented a suitable sample, taken in one day in both teaching shifts, using an anonymous questionnaire filled in on a voluntary basis. A total of 152 students were included in the study, of which 114 (75.0%) were female. Most students were in the third grade of secondary school (45.4%). Respondents who expressed a higher degree of agreement with the claim that they used MPs in every class were significantly older (p=0.001) and had a significantly lower average grade (p=0.020). The statement that MPs had a negative impact on their concentration was agreed with by 59 students (38.8%), while 43 (28.3%) agreed that MPs distracted them from the important moments in class. The belief that MPs could contribute to the improvement of the teaching process quality was held by 126 (82.9%) respondents. Students who believed that MPs could contribute to the improvement of the teaching process quality agreed more with the claim that MPs had a negative impact on their attention (p<0.001) and concentration (p<0.001). Research has shown that almost a third of the students used MPs during class, even during every class, which was correlated with older age and lower average grades of students in the previous school year, as well as with the claim that they used it to suppress boredom. Younger respondents were more likely to believe that their mobile phone affected their concentration and success.

In addressing antimicrobial resistance (AMR), environmental dimensions (ED) are increasingly considered. In this emerging field, we aimed to map the roles of pharmacists recognised in scientific literature and to qualitatively explore an international stakeholder group's perceptions on such pharmacist roles. A rapid scoping review of pharmacists' and pharmacy sector roles in addressing ED of AMR was conducted. Articles extracted from PubMed for the period 2006-2026 into a structured matrix were narratively synthesised by publication year, pharmacist role, thematic domain, and evidence levels (1-5). The survey was validated for clarity by 5 public health professionals and circulated online among stakeholders who participated in a UNEP workshop on ED of AMR. The answers to open-ended questions were coded and thematically analysed manually. Included articles (N=25/91 [28%]) were mainly descriptive and observational (evidence Level 4, [56%]), while 52% of records were published during 2025-2026. Included literature demonstrated that pharmacist roles were related to One Health, veterinary pharmacy and professional education and safe disposal and pharmacy-led-take-back of unused antimicrobials (32% each). Survey validation highlighted potential low awareness of environmental AMR dimensions and pharmacists' competencies. Of 18 invited participants, six (33%) completed the survey. Three main themes were identified: perceived pharmacist contributions across multiple levels of environmental AMR action, pharmacists' interdisciplinary expertise (recognised but not uniformly understood) and the need for system-level enabling mechanisms for pharmacists' involvement. Exploring pharmacists' roles in ED of AMR is a recent research field. Further research could focus on wider participant groups.

Sentinel hospital-based surveillance of severe acute respiratory infections (SARIs) enables assessment of the hospital burden of influenza and monitoring of severe clinical outcomes. The aim of this work is to estimate the hospital burden of SARI and SARI cases associated with influenza within the sentinel network of the Republic of Serbia during the 2025/2026 season. A descriptive analysis of aggregated weekly data from 11 sentinel hospital units in four statistical regions of Serbia was conducted for the period from the 40th epidemiological week of 2025 to the 20th epidemiological week of 2026. SARI hospitalizations, testing coverage and flu positivity, intensive care unit (ICU) treatment, mortality, and temporal distribution of hospital workload were analyzed. The estimated number of influenza-related SARI hospitalizations was calculated by applying the percentage of positivity among tested SARI cases to the total number of registered SARI cases. A total of 2,584 (7.3%) SARI cases were registered among 35,361 newly admitted patients. A total of 2,275 (88.0%) cases were tested, of which 423 (18.6%) were positive for influenza. The highest burden was recorded in persons aged ≥65 years. In the ICU, 17.2% of SARI and 18.0% of influenza-positive SARI cases were treated, with deaths in 4.6% and 6.6%, respectively. The hospital load reached its maximum in the 1st epidemiological week of 2026. Sentinel SARI surveillance enables assessment of hospital burden of influenza and severe clinical outcomes, with a particularly pronounced burden among the elderly.

Background: In 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic emerged as a public health emergency of international concern. Health system preparedness and response capacities have been diverted for surveillance and epidemic suppression in Serbia. This study evaluates the public health institutes (PHIs) network's contribution to performing SARS-CoV-2-related laboratory services (LSs). Methods: We collected and analyzed nationwide data on SARS-CoV-2-related LSs performed in all health care (HC) levels and PHIs in Serbia for the 2020-2022 period. The PHI-LSs contribution was calculated as a proportion of the total number of LSs performed in all HC facilities and PHIs and the ratio between PHIs and primary HC facilities LSs (Rls). Results: The highest contribution and Rls in SARS-CoV-2-related LSs were during 2020 (12.3%; 0.2) and the lowest in 2022 (2.2%; 0.03), with decreasing trend on the annual level. The highest district-level PHI's contribution in SARS-CoV-2-related LSs in the 2020-2022 period was as follows: 2020: Nišava district (39.5%), 2021: West Bačka district (27.5%) and 2022: Pčinja district (11.3%). On the other hand, the primary HC facilities enlarged their contribution over time (2020, 2021, 2022: 62.5%, 76.3%, 75.0%). During the observed period, secondary and tertiary HC facilities had the following annual SARS-CoV-2-related LSs contributions: 2020, 2021, 2022: 25.1%, 17.4%, 22.7%. Conclusions: At the beginning of the pandemic, PHIs had a greater LSs contribution, after which the focus of SARS-CoV-2-related LSs provision shifted toward the primary HC level. LSs in hospitals were performed based on relevant clinical guidelines and indications.