Covid ICU services full in Urfa amid high vaccine hesitancy

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More coronavirus patients are admitted to hospitals in every day in Urfa, the province with the lowest vaccination rate in Turkey.

Vaccine hesitation is very high in Urfa, especially in its rural and low-income parts, Turkish Medical Association (TTB) Board Member Kenan Gengeç told bianet.

People's lack of confidence and the lack of healthcare services in mother tongue are among the main reasons for the low vaccination rates in the predominantly Kurdish-populated province, he said. "People can't be reached and their concerns cannot be fully addressed because [healthcare workers] don't speak their language."

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Covid-19 intensive care units are nearly full in the city, he said. "The daily number of deaths in Urfa can be as high as 15-20."

Gengeç also noted that pregnant women are more vulnerable to the disease and there are currently seven or eight pregnant women on ventilators.

Another problem is the vaccination of the Syrian refugees in the city, the population of which is thought to be about a million, added Gengeç. While registered refugees can be vaccinated without problems, unregistered ones have problems in accession to the vaccine, he noted.

According to the Ministry of Health, more than 64 percent of the adult population in Urfa have received at least one vaccine dose whereas the country average is 83.4 percent. This rate does not include unregistered refugees.

A citizen said the consent form that people must sign before getting inoculated is the main reason for vaccine hesitancy. "When we look at the consent form, neither the state nor the company accepts any responsibility in case of an unfavorable situation."

Another one said, "At first, I feared the vaccine. After contracting the virus for the second time, I was going to be vaccinated, but I learned I need to wait for a period. I know people who caught the virus four times despite vaccination."

(RT/VK)