‘We are in a more difficult period than the beginning against COVID-19’

* Photo: Aytuğ Can Sencar / AA

Click to read the article in Turkish (1) (2) / Kurdish

The Ministry of Health announced the latest figures on the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak in Turkey yesterday (September 16).

While 1,771 people have tested positive, 63 people have died of COVID-19 in the last 24 hours. 1,342 people have recovered. The number of tests conducted in the last 24 hours has been announced as 112,645.

According to the figures announced till today, 8,855,180 COVID-19 tests have been conducted in Turkey so far. While the total number of cases is 296,391, the death toll has reached 7,249.

While 1,351 patients are reportedly in critical condition, the rate of COVID-19 patients with pneumonia has been announced as 7.1 percent. The total number of recovered patients is 262,602.

* Source: AA

'Health workers' burden has risen by 4-5 times'

Health Minister Fahrettin Koca addressed the reporters after the weekly Coronavirus Science Board meeting yesterday.

Koca has said that Turkey's bed occupancy rate is 51.6 percent, intensive care units' occupancy rate 66.3 percent and ventilators 33.6 percent. Sharing these rates by provinces as well, Koca has noted that "while there is no problem with the occupancy rate of ventilators, there might be problems with intensive care units' occupancy rates on a provincial basis."

As reported by the state-run Anadolu Agency (AA), Koca has underlined that "Turkey and the world are in a more difficult period in the face of the virus than they were in the beginning of the outbreak."

Emphasizing that "the increasing numbers of new and seriously ill patients have not prevented anyone from receiving treatment in Turkey so far," Minister Koca has raised concerns that "the burden of health workers has increased by four-five times when compared with the first period."

"The virus keeps infecting a large number of people every day," Fahrettin Koca has indicated, adding that "the infection rate of the virus has increased especially in the last two months."

Vaccine from China applied in Turkey in a first

Minister Koca has also shared information about the ongoing vaccine research in both Turkey and the world. Indicating that there are nine vaccine studies in Phase 3 trials, he has informed the public that the UK, Germany and China have started applying the vaccines.

"While we, as Turkey, are doing our own vaccine research, we have also started to work to ensure supply for early application," he has said, adding that with the permission of the Ministry of Health, the Sinovac vaccine of China has been applied to three voluntary healthcare workers in Hacettepe University in the capital city of Ankara, in a first in Turkey.

"It means that we might be going through the last critical months of the outbreak, the end of which looks imminent," he has noted.

Minister Koca has also indicated that Turkey has so far allowed two vaccine studies in Turkey, one is "Sinovac" from China and the other is "Pfizer." According to Koca, Sinovac will be first applied to 1,200 people and 10,000 people will be vaccinated in the upcoming period.

He has noted that the application of the Pfizer vaccine will start in over 10 centers, including Çapa and Cerrahpaşa university hospitals in İstanbul.

'No curfew for now'

Minister Fahrettin Koca has also addressed the question whether a curfew will be declared in Turkey as a coronavirus measure:

"I can say that a ban like a curfew is out of the question for Turkey for now and the Science Board has not made such a recommendation."

Occupancy rates across Turkey and by provinces

Minister Koca has also shared the occupancy rates of hospital beds in general, hospital beds in intensive care units and ventilators both across Turkey and in individual provinces. The figures for Turkey are as follows:

Bed occupancy rate: 51.6 percent
Occupancy rate of intensive care units: 66.3 percent
Occupancy rate of ventilators: 33.6 percent

When the numbers of average daily cases in the last week are compared with those of average daily cases in the last month, Minister Koca has indicated that the highest increase is in Kayseri with 39.7 percent, which is followed by Ankara with 38.84 percent and Mersin with 36.99 percent.

Ankara

The figures announced for Ankara are as follows:

Bed occupancy rate: 52.9 percent
Occupancy rate of intensive care units: 64.8 percent
Occupancy rate of ventilators: 28.1 percent
Average rate of daily pneumonia cases in the last month: 6.02 percent
Average rate of daily pneumonia cases in the last week: 3.02 percent
Average rate of daily pneumonia cases in the last 3 days: 2.39 percent

The infection rate when the average number of daily cases in the last week is compared with the average number in the last month: 38.84 percent
The ratio of daily intensive care patients in the last week to the average number of daily intensive care patients in the last month: 34.51 percent

Referring to the situation in Ankara over the past week against this backdrop, Minister of Health Koca has noted that the situation in the city has been stable in terms of both the numbers of cases and intensive care patients.

"I would like to say that Ankara has entered a stable period in the last week and has been taken under control," he has remarked.

İstanbul

The numbers in İstanbul and İzmir are as follows:

Bed occupancy rate: 55.3 percent
Occupancy rate of intensive care units: 60.2 percent
Occupancy rate of ventilators: 36.9 percent
Average rate of daily pneumonia cases in the last month: 6.53 percent
Average rate of daily pneumonia cases in the last week: 4.72 percent

İzmir

Bed occupancy rate: 54.1 percent
Occupancy rate of intensive care units: 72.2 percent
Occupancy rate of ventilators: 47.8 percent
Average rate of daily pneumonia cases in the last month: 8.38 percent
Average rate of daily pneumonia cases in the last week: 5.46 percent
Average rate of daily pneumonia cases in the last 3 days: 4.4 percent

Occupancy rates of intensive care units

Click on the image to enlarge

The provinces with the highest occupancy rates of intensive care units: Bartın (77.32 percent), Batman (76.4 percent), Sakarya (76.33 percent), Ordu (75.98 percent), Samsun (75.74 percent), Giresun (75.34 percent) and Hatay (74.92 percent).

Occupancy rates of ventilators

Click on the image to enlarge

The provinces with the highest occupancy rates of ventilators: Bartın (65.08 percent), Bilecik (56.45 percent), Amasya (56.11 percent), Afyonkarahisar (55.73 percent), Sakarya (53.86 percent) and İzmir (51.4 percent). (EKN/SD)