In memoriam: Dr. Maja Racic

In Memoriam: Dr. Maja Racic

When most people hear about the city of Sarajevo, they think of war. Few recall that in 1984, the Winter Olympic Games were held there. Sarajevo is a city that bridges East and West, where, until the 1992 war, residents lived in peace—Bosniaks (Muslims), Serbs, Croats, and Jews, who found refuge in the city after fleeing Spain in the 15th century.

Maja Racic lived in such a Sarajevo until she was twenty. Dr. Maja Racic was born on November 28, 1972, in Sarajevo, where she completed her elementary and high school education. Due to the war, she left Sarajevo for Kragujevac, Serbia, where she graduated from medical school. After her studies, she returned to post-war Bosnia and Herzegovina.

An article titled Twenty-five years later: Revisiting Bosnia and Herzegovina after implementation of a family medicine development program, authored by Geoffrey Hodgetts and associates, describes the state of medicine and society at that time.

Maja began her professional journey in Sokolac in 1997, on Mount Romanija, a town of 15,500 residents who faced great difficulty accessing the nearest hospital. Concurrently, she embarked on her academic career at the Faculty of Medicine in Foča, 70 km from Sarajevo. She commuted daily from Sarajevo to Foča, navigating a road that even Jeremy Clarkson of Top Gear might find challenging.

Maja completed her PhD in 2007, became an assistant professor in 2008, and an associate professor in 2013. From 2012 to 2017, she served as Vice Dean for Teaching at the Faculty of Medicine in Foča, implementing numerous international projects and attracting top experts across various medical fields.

Maja mentored countless students, residents, and colleagues, always finding time for everyone, especially her family—her husband Ivan and son Filip. She published 76 articles, received 670 citations, and participated in numerous international congresses. She was an invited lecturer at the World Rural Conference in 2015 in Dubrovnik.

Her mentorship extended beyond academics; she deeply connected with her mentees, sharing in their personal milestones. After moving to the United States, Maja continued her scientific work at the Mayo Clinic in Phoenix, Arizona, and at Ohio State University.

She passed away on October 28, 2024, in Phoenix. Maja was a person who inspired everyone to give their best. She dedicated her life to improving the status of family medicine in Bosnia and Herzegovina and throughout the former Yugoslavia.

Dozens of colleagues from Southeast Europe and around the world mourn her loss.

Author: Tanja Pekez