President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, participated in the opening ceremony of Sancaktepe Prof. Feriha Oz Emergency Hospital. Following the ceremony, President Erdogan and Minister of Health, Fahrettin Koca, took a tour of the hospital.
In his speech, President Erdogan wished the mercy of Allah upon those who had lost their lives in the Coronavirus pandemic and said, "We are a grateful nation. We do not forget anyone who has served and sacrificed for our country. For that reason, we named this hospital after Prof. Feriha Öz and the hospital in Yesilkoy after Prof. Murat Dilmener. This way, these two people, who dedicated their lives to human health and lost their lives working tirelessly during the pandemic, will be forever remembered."
President also added that the city hospital built in Okmeydani was named after Prof. Cemil Tascioglu and the one restored in Hadimkoy was named after Dr. İsmail Niyazi Kurtulmus.
"We are aiming for health tourism"
Noting that healthcare systems of many countries had collapsed due to the pandemic, Erdogan continued, "In such times, Turkey has made the best use out of its available capabilities and built new ones. This hospital, which is also equipped to serve as an intensive care unit, if needed, was built in only two months. It also has a helipad, right here. Murat Dilmener hospital is also equipped with one. A foreign patient can land here and can reach the hospital, which is in walking distance. When the treatment is over, he can return using the helipad. This hospital is ready for both Turkish and foreign patients. We are aiming for health tourism."
Pointing out that they were expecting the number of foreign patients increase even more than 750 thousand, Erdogan said, "I believe that Turkey's capabilities have been appreciated much more during the pandemic. Because, we have received requests from over 190 countries and we have delivered medical supplies to 90 of them."
"The importance of Universal Health Coverage has been recognized"
Adding that the importance of having one of the most comprehensive and low-cost universal health coverage schemes had been better recognized during the pandemic, Erdogan stressed that no other country had such a scheme.
In the speech he delivered at the opening ceremony, Minister Koca pointed out that the hospital would further strengthen the healthcare infrastructure and offer a new alternative and vision to healthcare services in general.
Reminding everyone that the COVID-19 pandemic had taught many things, Koca said, "This pandemic showed how appropriate it was to invest in healthcare and how healthcare investments should be at the heart of development."
"These hospitals will be the cornerstones of the public sector in health tourism"
"These hospitals were not only built to serve during disasters and emergencies", said Koca and continued, "They will also offer their services in specialized areas during normal times. These hospitals will offer us great capacities for intensive care and palliative care. Dialysis patients will also be able to receive services here. These hospitals will be the cornerstones of the public sector in health tourism. They will prepare Istanbul for disasters and emergencies and will also contribute to the growing health tourism."
Highlighting the fact that the hospital was built in only 45 days, Koca continued, "The hospital is made up us 2 sections and 8 blocks. It has laboratory and imaging capacities. Patient beds can be turned into intensive care beds, if needed. The hospital is also equipped with 100 dialysis units for chronic kidney patients."
Prof. Ferhan Oz, the son of late Prof. Feriha Oz, also delivered a speech at the ceremony.
After the ceremony, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Minister of Health Dr. Fahrettin Koca, and their delegation made inspections at the hospital.
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