Evaluation of the National Health System Utilization Status of the Syrian Refugees in Turkey Between 2011 and 2017

Abstract

Background: The objective of this study is to evaluate the status of the Syrian refugees (SR) in Turkey in terms of using the National Health System (NHS) between 2011 and 2017. Methods: The study is a descriptive and cross-sectional epidemiological research ORACLE SQL Developer program was used for data analysis, and frequency analyzes regarding the person, place, and time characteristics of the health services that SR received between 2011 and 2017 were presented. Results: The SRs benefited from NHS hospital services approximately 35 million times (34,973,029). Approximately 40% of the SRs that benefited from the NHS are under the age of 18. The proportion of those under 5 y old is 15.8%; 55.8% of the SRs that benefited from the NHS are women. The utilization status of the SRs from the NHS by region is as follows: 33.4% Mediterranean Region, 29.2% Southeastern Anatolia Region, and 19.0% Marmara Region. The types of health institutions that the SRs used are as follows: 44.0% state hospitals, 15.0% family medicine centers, and 13.3% training and research hospitals. A total of 16,009,524 cases were intervened as part of EMS. Conclusion: Syrian refugees in Turkey comprehensively benefited from primary, secondary, and tertiary health services free of charge between 2011 and 2017 in Turkey. It is seen that they have access to private and high-cost health services, such as air ambulance, cancer treatment, and dental treatment.