Training, certificate help Syrian refugee doctors become legitimate

Hundreds of qualified Syrian doctors who have found a safe haven in Turkey after fleeing the bloody Syrian civil war will now be able to treat Syrian refugees with a certificate at special clinics, Daily Sabah has learned.

There are tens of thousands of qualified Syrian refugees in Turkey who are not able to work due to their status. In an initiative by the Health Ministry, in collaboration with the World Health Organization (WHO) and the European Union (EU), around 600 Syrian doctors receive training from their Turkish colleagues to get to know the Turkish health system and obtain a certificate.

Daily Sabah talked to Turkish doctors providing training to Syrian doctors at a hotel in southeastern Gaziantep province. The doctors, who work in Istanbul, Ankara and Antalya, said that the aforementioned Syrian doctors will receive a certificate following their training in several provinces and be able to work at special clinics for refugees.

Thirty-seven year-old Ismael Saleh, who used to be a child doctor in Aleppo until the civil conflict began, told Daily Sabah after a session in his training program that he is overjoyed to work again. "I enrolled once I heard the news. I hope I will return to my work," he said.

Illegal clinics have been a significant problem for the government so far. According to previous newspaper articles in Turkish media outlets, more than 100 illegal clinics are run by Syrian doctors.

Apart from the fact that the illegal clinics run by Syrian doctors cannot be monitored by the Health Ministry, the conditions and equipment used in operations are reportedly quite poor.

"It will give us the chance to work legally in Turkey so that we will not have to find an illegal way," Saleh said.

Daily Sabah was in southeastern Şanlıurfa province in July. There were scores of qualified Syrian refugees who were and still are unable to work due to legal restrictions. Granting Syrians Turkish citizenship was a matter of discussion at the time. The bill is still being discussed.