After we published Andrej’s story, local authorities discovered four more cases of neglected and overlooked residents in the municipality of Kočevje. Will anyone be held accountable for neglecting the care of Andrej, who was bedridden for four months, unwashed, in pain, and without proper care?

The Kočevje Social Work Center (CSD) left the ailing Andrej without assistance until our news reports. The same goes for the Home Care Institute Jutro, which has a concession and receives a substantial amount of municipal funds annually. Both institutions were informed about his health and living conditions at least two months prior, but they failed to carry out their duties.

For the past 14 days, Andrej has been exercising and strengthening his muscles in a new hospital bed, aiming to walk again and live independently as soon as possible. He emphasized this during our visit, expressing his desire to stand on his own feet again – both figuratively and literally.

The mayor and deputy mayor of Kočevje were visibly shocked and surprised when we informed them of Andrej’s case. Both agreed that such a thing should not be happening in the year 2024. On the same day, the municipality took action, providing Andrej with a hospital bed for personal and health care by social caregivers.

Andrej’s first steps

Following our reporting, the Home Care Institute Jutro now delivers lunch to Andrej. A plate with utensils is now on the mobile table next to the bed. Since Andrej moved from a low and inappropriate bed to a hospital bed, caregivers also bathe him, change his clothes, and take care of his appearance. “The caregivers are very kind,” says Andrej, who only wishes for dignified care and treatment that would enable him to walk again. His neighbor Slavica also called a hairdresser to cut Andrej’s hair. Andrej, who is no longer confined to his bed, is now able to stand up again. Yesterday, he took his first steps after five months: “I walked just for a few seconds, but it's progress,” he enthusiastically informed us.

Not only Andrej but also his attic apartment is transforming. After the municipality organized the cleaning and basic renovation of the spaces, local craftsmen replaced his broken sink. They also installed a water heater so that hot water could flow from the new tap. Andrej's acquaintance, Roman Vučko, has initiated a complete renovation of the small room where he will soon move. Slavica's husband has also offered to help with the renovation, and as the compassionate neighbor predicts, by the end of the month, Andrej will be living in completely new, clean, and organized spaces. There will be no broken windows, no drafts straight into the bed, and no more leaks from the roof.

Turning personal distress into mudslinging

During our visits to the incapacitated resident of Kočevje, we often heard that Andrej is “lazy and responsible for his fate because he doesn't want to work.” Such judgments even came from those who, by their profession, should advocate for fellow men and ostensibly espouse empathy. However, it turned out that Andrej has a strong will to improve his situation and follows the physiotherapist's instructions. He wants another chance. Immediately after we revealed his sad story, a doctor visited him, took his blood, examined him, and wrote about seven or eight referrals. Andrej will soon know what his health condition is.

Shifting responsibility and deceiving inspectors?

The CSD Kočevje responded only on the eleventh day after a call from Andrej's neighbor, Slavica Ahmenović. They visited Andrej for the first time then. And what has changed? Nothing. For two months, they only dealt with paperwork, and all they arranged for the helpless and neglected patient was the delivery of a silver tray without a spoon and plate once a day.

Andrej will not have money for food the following month. Until our arrival, there was no one to look him in the eyes and comfort him that everything would be okay. The absence of empathy from office bureaucrats, who, in Andrej's case, stared indifferently at dry paragraphs, could have – without exaggeration – pushed Andrej to death. His neighbor, who had called the mental health center, publicly stated that he contemplates suicide in his misery. It was the mental health center that informed the CSD Kočevje about Andrej’s case, not the other way around, as director Katarina Hiti would like to portray. She prepared a report on Andrej's care for Minister Luka Mesec. According to the report, Andrej would have participated in a marathon by last Christmas. This shows paper can endure everything. Pictures of Andrej upon our arrival were eloquent enough. Someone should resign due to the lack of action. According to our information, there is a real internal struggle within the CSD Kočevje, with the director clinging to her position and gaining the support of some colleagues who had neglected Andrej. Following our reporting, the municipality demanded that the CSD disclose all municipal cases where the elderly are forgotten and lonely. According to our information, they found four more such residents. In many cases, these people were indeed abandoned by their relatives, but the CSD, as a state social organ, has the task of intervening and helping.

The Jutro Institute is at risk of losing concession, but the municipality's hands are tied

At our media outlet, we have previously aired a recording of one of the employees from the Jutro Institute who revealed that the director, Gregor Levič, instructed staff not to deal with Andrej. This was also confirmed by one of the founders of the home care institute. The neglect of the duty to provide assistance is grounds for a criminal complaint. However, the Jutro Institute has two other founders who are protective of the director, allowing him to continue leading the institute. According to our information, Mr. Levič allegedly also lacks the appropriate qualifications. After our reporting, the director attempted to protect himself by pressuring his employees to sign statements claiming that Andrej refused assistance. Some workers declined to do so. According to our information, Levič is rarely in the office, as evidenced by publicly available data showing his involvement in several companies. What he does in other companies remains undisclosed, but one of them even deals with medical equipment.

Naturally, we were curious if, through interconnected companies, the institute, the nursing home, and his businesses were channelling public funds. According to our information, the Municipality of Kočevje intends to revoke the concession from the Jutro Institute. However, the law, which grants the institute more rights than obligations, hinders them. In this case, even after revoking the concession, the Jutro Institute has one more year of the right to provide social services to the municipality.

When the media unite, lives are saved!

Tomorrow, Andrej faces medical examinations. He will be transported to the University Rehabilitation Institute Soča for the first time, where they will attempt to get him back on his feet. X-rays will finally reveal the causes of inflammation and the reasons for the pain that confines him to bed. Therapy will follow. He is somewhat eager. After five months of complete bed rest, he wants only one thing: to stand up. Once doctors and physiotherapists get him back on his feet, he hopes to drive a car again and, as he anticipates, earn some money. Meanwhile, the nursing home has already informed him that they cannot him. Many say that is fortunate. Andrej's story is one with a happy conclusion. However, it could have turned out differently. The help of his neighbor, Slavica, meant a world for Andrej. Then there are us, the media, who have demonstrated our power and our value: humanity! The power of the media, based on freedom of expression, inviolability, and the protection of human personality and dignity, has been demonstrated in our joint efforts. With a single goal: to save a human life. This was the goal that the media achieved in Andrej's case. The paraphrase from the Hebrew Talmud – “whoever saves one life, saves the entire world” – poses a common challenge also for the media. If we cannot save the whole world, we should do something redemptive for an individual.