SPRAY THE PATIENTS

 

SPRAY THE PATIENTS

Who is to blame? Şule Hanım had a dental problem. The denture she had before the pandemic had bothered her a lot. She went to the hospital the next day. However, her treatment was cut short when she was faced with pandemic restrictions. She was forced to use the bad denture for two years despite various difficulties. Every time she went to the hospital, no action was taken. Her doctor was constantly working outside with the contact tracing team, and other doctors were not looking.

The system forced the patient to go to that doctor for four years. Or, she could go to a private doctor and get her treatment for a significant amount of money. Şule Hanım was able to catch her doctor after two years. However, this time, the hospital technicians had changed. The contract was renewed every year, and since it was renewed, they did not want to do the old prosthetist's job. When the pandemic restrictions were lifted, Şule Hanım said she wanted to remove her prosthesis. Her doctor tried to convince her patient by saying that she was not satisfied with the technicians and did not expect anything better. However, when Şule Hanım insisted that she wanted to remove it, her doctor said that a fee could be requested. However, Şule Hanım had paid for the prostheses. Since they were subject to the statute of limitations, she had to make another payment. The doctor told Şule Hanım that she could apply to patient rights. He said that if there was a good result there, we would remove them free of charge. Şule Hanım applied to patient rights. Patient rights were also indifferent, citing the statute of limitations.

Mrs. Şule had become very tired of this situation and applied to the Ministry of Health. Then patient rights stepped in again and told Mrs. Şule that they would contact her and provide her treatment. However, they had agreed to make the prosthesis free of charge as long as she did not have serious tooth loss. While they were talking to the patient rights personnel about setting a date, an uncle around 65-70 years old knocked on the door. He immediately came in and asked, "My lady, I am a patient with an appointment. I have been waiting for about 40 minutes. There are no technicians, how much longer will I wait!" The patient rights personnel said that he had seen with his own eyes that the technicians were working very hard on the floors and how much effort they were putting in. "We already have few health personnel, most of them have quit their jobs. We want you to wait patiently and understandingly for them," he said. The old uncle snapped, saying, "What is my fault, what should I do? I have my own things to do!" The patient rights personnel suddenly got tough and said, "Look sir, if you continue with this tone, I will initiate a code white for you." He looked at the man's face. The man must not have liked the image of a criminal because he left without saying a word, gave him a meaningful look, closed the door and left.

When I put myself in the patient's shoes, the patient was right. In fact, he had never missed his appointment. If he had come half an hour late, they would have sent the patient back. The procedure would not have been done. However, the patient had tried for weeks to make an appointment. When I put myself in the health care provider's shoes, he was right too. Their nervous system was damaged, they were members of an institution. They had to obey irrational orders. Their rights were taken away from them, their working hours were not balanced, they were forced to do what the system imposed. Our health care providers were expected to bow to the injustices imposed on them, they were expected to comply with decisions that disregarded human health, threats were made to those who did not comply, they were told to leave the country if they did not comply with the imposed things by the authorities with contempt, and they challenged. Those who had the means were forced to leave the country. The remaining health care providers were forced to endure various pressures, faced all the problems of the patients, and although only the health care providers sought ways to make their voices heard, all the ways were blocked and they were subjected to a test of patience. Those who could stand it stayed, those who could not stand it left the country and started a new life from scratch. They tried to stay on their feet by trying to reinforce their knowledge with a new language. They continued to struggle despite entering a period when it was not easy to start everything from scratch. What they relied on was their belief that there were institutions that could address their problems and listen to them. The society was forced to endure the consequences of the system imposed on it.

Şule Hanım resolved the issue with the patient rights personnel and ensured that the necessary treatment was started two days later. Şule Hanım went to the health center the next day to get her daughter prescribed. While talking to the doctor, one of the patients was complaining that her mother's treatment was not being provided. The doctor asked, "I don't understand, is there a problem in this health sector?" "Nobody can get treatment." The doctor took a deep breath and turned to the patient. "The conclusion of the meeting that was held recently is this; the Ministry of Health's suggestion is to repel patients!" The patient asked what this meant. The doctor offered a solution by saying, "So, go and come back, don't bother, don't take too much time." "However, our conscience doesn't allow it, we are still doing the best we can. That's why we are extremely tired," he said.

It has belittled the labor and profession of our healthcare professionals and has displayed an attitude that does not take our people into consideration. Our healthcare profession has been tied up and its nervous systems have been damaged due to this decision. The children of tomorrow who carry hope have been blocked and are faced with a policy of accepting evil in despair. However, we will continue to carry our hope. Hope will always exist. Evil will not continue forever. We will continue to carry hope and continue our lives believing that everything will be alright one day.

“ Hope is looking for the light and believing in the future, even in the darkest of times.”

28.02.2025
Mesime Elif Unalmis