Biography
Biography: Hatice Simsek
Abstract
The main objective of the health care system is to minimize differences in health status between individuals and groups and to optimize health level as much as possible. Modern health care system aims to offer health services “everyone, always and everywhere”. Since 1990s, WHO has encouraged this system by giving high-stake loans to countries applying the family medicine system. “Health for All 21” program has identified community and family-centered primary health care services on the fifth target. In many countries (Cuba, America and UK) in the world, family medicine model is applied. In order to expand access to basic health services, Family Practice Model was adopted by Turkey in 2004. The first application was started in Düzce on 15th September 2005 and the family medicine system was introduced in the whole country as of December 13, 2010. With this application, individual preventive health services with the first stage diagnosis, treatment and rehabilitation services in family health centers and other tasks that also involved the coordination of social preventive health services in community health centers were collected. Nurses working with family physicians are one of the main components of family medicine. According to Turkey Health Statistics Yearbook 2014 report; 21 384 doctors, 6922 nurses, 12647 midwives and 1815 other health staff are working in family medicine unit. Among nurses (94 404) who are working in 82% of hospitals, only 7% are working in Family Medicine Unit in Turkey. WHO stated two members, "family physician/family doctor" and "family health nurses" are as indispensable in primary health care team. But nurse title doesn’t pass in the family medicine system in Turkey; "Family Health Personnel" title is used for midwives, nurses and emergency medical technicians. Therefore, public health nurse academics in Turkey conducted a workshop on "Impact of Family Practice in the Public Health Nursing Education and Practice" during 22 to 23 September 2011 in NevÅŸehir. According to the report of the working group; the main problems experienced as a result of family medicine practices in undergraduate and postgraduate public health nursing training were identified and practice specified and proposals have been made to solve the identified problem. This presentation will describe the family medicine in Turkey, including nursing services, personal rights and duties of family healthcare personel, public health nursing workshop reports associated with family medicine and the effects of family medicine on nursing.