Turkey

8 Turkey special advertising sectionNot Just for TouristsWith an eye on gaining membershipto the EU, Turkey hasbeen working hard in recentyears to establish a credible brand for itsnumerous and varied industries.Healthcare may well turn out to be oneof its prize assets.In the past, Europeans have passedthrough Turkey on their way to India,Hungary and, lately, Greece and Cyprusto take advantage of the highly skilledspecialists and medical facilities availablein these countries at prices far belowthose at home. Today many of these“medical tourists” are coming to Turkeyitself for a variety of healthcare services.Already a name to reckon with in thefields of ophthalmology and dentistry,Turkey has a competitive advantagethat’s now attracting patients for a widerange of medical procedures. For example,a heart bypass that costs about$75,000 in Britain or in the Middle Eastcosts only $15,000 in Turkey.Besides offering significantly lowercosts, healthcare in Turkey also benefitsfrom a vast pool of science and medicalgraduates and the government’s increasingwillingness to invest in both publicand private healthcare.The country’s health expenditure hasincreased significantly over the past fewyears, from 3.7% of GDP in 1999 to 5% in2005, a higher percentage than in manycountries with similar per capita incomes.The Turkish Health Ministry is introducinga new model to facilitate cooperationbetween the public and private sectorsin the construction of hospitals. Itcalls for the government to provide theland and pay rent for up to 30 years,after which the hospital will become theproperty of the state. The investors willmanage construction, according togovernment-approved plans, and will beresponsible for hospital maintenance.This model will allow the construction ofhospitals on schedule, without delaysdue to insufficient financing.While the government’s healthcaremodel will lead to a substantial increasein the opening of new hospitals acrossthe country, a number of well-regardedinstitutions, such as the AmericanHospital of Istanbul, have been operatingin the country for some time.The hospital’s original purpose was toprovide medical services to foreign militaryunits stationed in Istanbul. In 1955the Koc Group, one of the largestfamily-owned conglomerates in Turkey,acquired the American Hospital, and thegroup’s Vehbi Koc Foundation owns ittoday. “The Koc family has beenextremely supportive of this project, andthey have invested more than $100 millionin the hospital so far,” says CEOGeorge D. Rountree.Lifetime careRun as a nonprofit organization, theAmerican Hospital offers a wide range ofservices and treats more than 120,000patients a year. It employs 279 specialists,many of them trained in the U.S.,and 1,038 support personnel. The building,located in one of the busiest commercialdistricts of Istanbul, was constructedto withstand earthquakes up toa magnitude of 9 on the Richter scale,an important architectural feature in aregion prone to violent seismic activity.When the current expansion is complete,the hospital will house 200 patient beds,some of which will enjoy a spectacularview over the Bosporus. “Our CEO“In the long run, with the assistanceof our partner, the Johns HopkinsMedical Schools, the AMC will becomea healthcare teaching hospital and areference point for the region.”Dr. Murat Dayanikli, CEO of Anadulu Medical Centerwanted the hospital’s rooms to be similarto hotel rooms, and I think we’ve managedto accomplish that,” says a tophospital manager.The American Hospital has received ISO14000 and ISO 9001 certification in compliancewith international standards andit regularly holds symposiums with hospitalsin the U.S. to recruit Turkish doctorsworking there.The Anadolu Medical Center (AMC)offers another healthcare option inTurkey. The facility has a pioneeringemphasis on preventative medicine andlifetime continuum care, with a wellnesscenter and primary care facility under thesame roof as long-term care and a combinationof education and research programs.This multidisciplinary approachfacilitates diagnosis and treatment in allof the center’s specialist departments,and differentiates AMC from other medicalfacilities in theregion.Dr. MuratDayanikli, the center’sCEO, identifiesthe crucial role ofthe primary carephysician in preventativehealthcare.“That is why ourlogo says ‘in healthand in sickness,’“he says. A Yalegraduate who hasworked extensively in the U.S., Dayanikligreatly values the AMC’s 15-year partnershipwith one of America’s leadingteaching hospitals. “In the long run,with the assistance of our partner, theJohns Hopkins Medical Schools, theAMC will become a healthcare teachinghospital and a reference point for theregion.” He also emphasizes that over35% of his staff is certified by the U.S.Medical Board.The AMC’s facilities are impressive byany standard. The campus covers 45,000square meters, has 209 beds and is surroundedby forest, enabling it to offertreatment in a peaceful environment farremoved from the city.It is equipped withcutting-edgetechnologies, includingthe CyberKnifeSystem, one of themost advanced cancertreatments available,and is already attracting attention for itsoncology, cardiovascular, neurology andgynecology departments.Dayanikli’s long-term goal is to makeAMC the best hospital in Europe, offeringstate-of-the-art services combinedwith unique Turkish hospitality, andsecure in the knowledge that science inTurkey is on par with that of Europe, theMiddle East and the rest of the world. ❖