For a while, Turkey fared well in containing the coronavirus outbreak but has found itself lapsing into a worsened situation recently. Daily cases are around 30,000 nowadays. Nevertheless, those at the highest risk from infections apparently remain safe. Turkey is among the most successful countries in saving the lives of the elderly in nursing and care homes.
Thanks to effective measures taken in nursing and care homes, Turkey has prevented outbreaks in those facilities. In the countries most affected by the pandemic, around 50% or more of all deaths from the virus are from the elderly living in nursing homes, according to the country’s Directorate of Services for the Disabled and Elderly. According to the directorate, less than 10% of coronavirus-related deaths occurred in nursing and care homes in Turkey.
Turkey started to implement measures in care homes in February 2020, a month before the first COVID-19 cases were reported in the country, by restricting visits and monitoring temperatures of residents at least four times a day. In April 2020, all facilities serving the elderly were instructed to switch to a 14-day fixed shift system and COVID-19 tests were conducted on personnel entering and exiting facilities from the outside. If test results are positive for the virus, that individual is treated at a hospital. Those whose treatment process has been completed are monitored in isolation institutions for 14 days following hospital discharge.
According to the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, older adults are at greater risk of requiring hospitalization or dying if diagnosed with COVID-19.
The measures taken at nursing and care homes in Turkey have been shown as a model several times by the World Health Organization (WHO).
