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News from Turkey

Turkish Health Crisis: Doctors Face Administrative Pressure

Health Sector

The Ministry of Health’s ambitious plan to expand primary healthcare services has hit a significant roadblock: a critical lack of public infrastructure. While the Turkish government aims to reduce the number of patients per doctor to improve service quality, the ”Turkish health crisis” is escalating, as the burden of finding, leasing, and renovating Family Health Centers (ASM) has been shifted onto the physicians themselves.

Dr. Ahmet Kandemir, President of the Federation of Family Medicine Employees (AHESEN), warns that doctors are being forced into “contracting” roles and face police intervention and threats of suspension when they protest the lack of state-provided facilities.

The “Out-of-Pocket” Clinic Model

Unlike secondary or tertiary hospitals, many ASMs in Turkey operate in private buildings leased by physicians. With skyrocketing real estate prices and exorbitant rents in 2026, setting up a standard-compliant health facility now costs millions of Liras.

Dr. Kandemir notes that doctors are expected to fund these start-up costs personally, only to face administrative overreach once the centers are operational.

Escalating Tensions: Police Interventions and Suspensions

The Turkish health crisis reached a breaking point recently in Antalya and Aydın, where administrative authorities allegedly attempted to force new units into already overcrowded, privately leased spaces.

  • Antalya Kızılırmak ASM: Reports indicate that provincial health teams attempted to intervene in a center, accompanied by police, to force the opening of a new unit in an unsuitable physical space.

  • Aydın Incidents: Two family physicians were reportedly suspended from duty after resisting the imposition of new units into their existing, privately funded clinics.

Dr. Kandemir emphasizes that these centers are legally private leases subject to the Turkish Code of Obligations. “Forcing an additional tenant into a private lease without the consent of the doctor or the landlord is a violation of property rights,” he stated.

Public Health Risks: Privacy and Infection

The “building squeeze” isn’t just a professional grievance; it is a direct threat to patient safety. When new units are crammed into narrow, existing spaces, the following risks emerge:

  1. Infection Control: Vaccination, laboratory work, and general examinations conducted in the same cramped quarters increase the risk of cross-contamination.

  2. Patient Privacy: Consultations for sensitive maternal and infant health checks are often compromised by inadequate partitioning.

  3. Service Accessibility: As doctors lose the incentive to open new units under threat of administrative “bullying,” citizens in expanding neighborhoods are left without local access to primary care.

The Call for Public Investment

The AHESEN leadership argues that the solution is not disciplinary action but public construction. To resolve the 2026 healthcare bottleneck, the Ministry of Health is urged to:

  • Construct purpose-built, state-owned ASM buildings.

  • Cease the practice of requiring doctors to act as property developers.

  • Respect the legal boundaries of existing private lease agreements.

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