Turkey is one of the few countries that has been able to some extent to stand up to the Coronavirus (Covid-19), in which only one case of a Turkish citizen has been declared while in Europe.
The virus that appeared in China in December 2019 invaded almost every country in the world, and soon turned into a global epidemic, causing thousands of deaths in a large number of countries in the world.
The journalist Daniel Kutcher pointed out that the reasons for Turkey’s success in dealing with the outbreak of the virus are due to the measures taken by the Turkish authorities since April 2019, when Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan issued a circular that included several decisions related to confronting the influenza virus.
Erdogan’s circular stated that a new type of influenza virus may occur due to changes in the genetic structure of influenza viruses, and it may acquire the ability to transmit easily from person to person, indicating that it can lead to outbreaks of epidemics and the development of an infection that has never come into contact with The new type of influenza virus or caused by the virus.
The post listed the measures that public institutions and organizations should take against the possibility of such an epidemic, which may affect the majority of the population, as follows:
1- Publishing the National Influenza Pandemic and Pandemic Preparation Plan, which was prepared in coordination with the Ministry of Health, where ministries, institutions and other public organizations are identified on the Turkish government’s website, providing detailed information and current announcements on this topic regularly.
2- Preparing the “Influenza and Influenza Preparedness Plan” in coordination between the states in order to define the work to be done during the epidemic and reduce the impact of the epidemic on society.
3- Purchasing additional services, units, regions, tools and materials required in the states in order to provide health care services in hospitals and treatment centers as well as in public institutions in cooperation with local health directorates.
4- Organizing informational and cooperative meetings by state health directorates under the coordination of the Ministry of Health.
5- During the epidemic period, the necessary measures will be taken in order not to cause any disruption to public services, and central and local organizations affiliated with the Ministry of Health will have to implement the “National Influenza Pandemic Preparation Plan”.
Koucher comments that the publication of this publication confirms the foresight of the Turkish President and the Turkish government, which is the biggest factor in Turkey’s success so far in dealing with the Coronavirus outbreak.
