Health Minister denies claims that hospitals hit full capacity due to Covid-19

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No hospitals in Turkey are out of capacity because of the coronavirus epidemic, Minister of Health Fahrettin Koca said today (August 6) in response to claims by doctors' organizations in various parts of the country.

"We don't have a province whose hospitals are full because of Covid-19, we don't even have a hospital with full capacity. The claims are unfounded," Koca said. "The owners of these claims should take measures as if the hospitals are full. Maybe the claims would benefit the public this way."

Medical chambers of various provinces have been recently pointing out high occupancy rates due to the increasing number of new cases.

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He gave the following information on the central province of Konya, where the hospitals were claimed to be out of capacity: "Service bed occupancy rate is 48%, the intensive care occupancy rate is 76%, the ventilator occupancy rate is 42%."

"Do not take into account the claims of those who downplay the disease and those who make hospitals look desperate," he further said.

Konya Provincial Director of Health Dr. Mehmet Koç said yesterday that if the coronavirus cases continued to increase with the current speed, there would be a bed shortage in the province.

Konya Training and Research Hospital was designated as a "pandemic hospital" due to the high number of infections, he had noted. (AS/VK)