Violence against health care workers continues to take lives in Turkey. On Wednesday, a cardiologist, Ekrem Karakaya, was shot 15 times and died. According to other sources, the shooter's mother was a patient of Karakaya and he blames the doctor for her death. Karakaya's funeral was held on Thursday.
His death drew attention to the appalling murders of many health care workers. President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and Health Minister Fahrettin Koca also voiced their concerns on this issue.
Erdoğan said he was sorry for Karakaya's gruesome death and expressed his condolences to the doctor's relatives. He also pointed out that they will take measures to prevent the violence against health care workers and will do their best to punish them
Koca shared messages regarding the horrible incident across his social media accounts. He stated that they would do everything to not dirty doctors' uniforms with the stain of violence.
The horrifying death of Karakaya was the last straw for many. The Union of Health Care and Social Service Workers (Sağlık-Sen) announced they would go on strike in many places in Turkey.
Across the country, many protested the atrocious attack by being silent for 15 minutes. While the protestors shouted the “violence in health should end” slogan, some of the patients came for a doctor’s appointment and supported the strike with ovations.
In 2021 alone, the health care workers were the victims of 190 cases of violence, according to a report published by the Union of Health Care and Social Service Workers (Sağlık-Sen). These cases involve 364 assailants and some 316 health care workers.
Ayşegül Bilen, a specialist doctor in a hospital in Turkey, said they are very sad about what happened on Wednesday. "The attackers should be punished immediately; we are not safe in our workplace. Therefore, necessary measures should be taken. If not, then we announce that we will not work in an unsafe environment."
Other violence-related cases against health workers took place recently in cities like Turkey's Izmir and Bursa.
