Presentation and Organization of Health Services in Kahramanmaraş Earthquakes

Abstract

Disasters, which are an unusual situation, disrupt the life order of the society, cause large amounts of loss of life and property, and directly or indirectly affect health. Earthquakes cause the most destruction among natural disasters. The fact that earthquakes of the same magnitude have different results in different regions and under different conditions is significantly related to the level of development of countries. There are many active faults in Turkey, which is located on the Alpine-Himalayan belt, which is an important earthquake belt of the world. February 6, 2023, two earthquakes with a magnitude of 7.7 centered in Kahramanmaraş Pazarcık district and 7.6 magnitude centered in Elbistan affected 11 provinces. 16% of the country's population resides in the region affected by the earthquake, approximately 80 thousand people were injured, and 51 thousand people died. Implementation of minimum health care standards in disasters can reduce disaster-related morbidity and mortality. This compilation study was carried out with the aim of examining the structure of the disaster and emergency organization within the scope of health services and the delivery of health services after the earthquakes that occurred on February 6, 2023, in Kahramanmaraş, Pazarcık and Elbistan districts. It is thought that this study will contribute to the development and implementation of minimum health services in case of earthquake.