Emergency Health Measures on The Border
On Monday, 102 physicians and health workers from Istanbul are transferred from Istanbul to the southeast of turkey.
World Health Organization (WHO) upon request of Turkey delivers medical supplies against smallpox and anthrax nuclear, chemical and biological toxication.
Tent Sites
The ministrys plans cover providing "one tent site per 10-15 thousand" and health service for 100 thousand prospective refugees. According to the ministrys schemes further will be available should the number of refugees grow higher.
Turkish Ministry of Health has resolved to employ total 1080 medical personnel in the refugee camps in order to provide health care including general surgery, treatment of internal diseases, obstetrics, pediatrics and orthopedics.
102 physicians and health workers from Istanbul
102 physicians and health workers from 24 health centers from Istanbul Monday morning left Istanbul for southeast. They were ordered to be ready for departure in 24 hours at the weekend.
They were yet uninformed of where, for how long and under what circumstances they would be working.
Measures in the border area
Medical supplies and equipments, vaccinations, serum, iodine tablets to be used for possible cases of trioid cancer caused by nuclear weapons, antrophin injectors against effects of chemical weapons and contraceptives for refugees have been transported to the border area.
These supplies are reported to be sent to southeast provinces of Sirnak, Mardin, Batman, Hakkari and Van where Turkey expects to absorb the influx of refugees from Northern Iraq.
Smallpox vaccination
The consultative board for immunization also meets to consider measures against contagious diseases that may result from the use of mass destruction weapons, mainly "smallpox" and "anthrax".
The board confirms that the measures taken by the Ministry of Health against contagious diseases is sufficient "for the moment" and indicates that Turkey is not faced with smallpox or anthrax threat. The board recommends that smallpox vaccination should not be applied unless the risk is apparent.
However, the ministry requests aid from international organizations and from European Union (EU) countries in order to improve its smallpox vaccination stocks. The first party from the World Health Organization (WHO) has already arrived
According to a public statement by the ministry Alongside the WHO, UN and UNICEF Denmark has sent 10 thousand doses of smallpox vaccination and Hungary a thousand doses. Norway has sent medical supplies of 650 thousand euros value against effects of biological-chemical weapons and Poland has sent protective supplies. (MS/BE/EK)