‘Strong health system Turkey’s advantage amid pandemic’

EDIRNE, Turkey

Turkey’s most important advantage against the novel coronavirus, which has claimed thousands of lives worldwide, is its strong health infrastructure, according to a Turkish expert.

“Since the first case [in Turkey] till today, it is seen that the strong health army and infrastructure of our country have been working efficiently and adjusted itself with the rapidly changing situations,” Sedat Ustundag, dean of Health Sciences Faculty at Trakya University, told Anadolu Agency.

He said the anti-virus efforts in the country are carried out in a systematic way under the leadership of the Health Ministry and the Coronavirus Scientific Advisory Board to reduce its effects on the public health.

Ustundag highlighted that Turkey has taken exemplary measures against the COVID-19 virus, and said data shows the success in the fight.

“Actually, our health system had intense workload and labor, so we are in one of the most advantageous countries in terms of complying with the new situation,” he said.

Follow Health Ministry suggestions

The expert said all health workers are carrying out their duty with great devotion, citing the downward trend in rate of rise in the coronavirus cases and deaths.

Ustundag underscored that in the coming days, the situation depends on to what extent the people are adopting isolation rules.

He advised people to strictly follow the suggestions of the Health Ministry.

“We have seen that it is of great importance that each individual knows and applies the rules to stem the pandemic,” he said, adding that from children to elderly, everyone should be trained for possible future situations like this.

As of Thursday, Turkey has registered 101,790 cases of COVID-19, with the nationwide death toll at 2,491 and recoveries at 18,491.

More than 2.72 million cases have been reported in 185 countries and regions since the virus emerged in China last December, with Europe and the US being the world’s hardest-hit areas.

The global death toll is above 191,000 deaths, while recoveries are nearing 746,000, according to figures compiled by the US' Johns Hopkins University.

* Writing by Sena Guler