Travels: Turkey presents its "safe tourism" practices to the world

Following an intense diplomatic traffic between the Minister of Culture and Tourism Mehmet Nuri Ersoy and the top countries sending tourists to Turkey, Republic of Turkey Ministry of Culture and Tourism welcomes in Antalya ambassadors of these countries and the international media.

The meeting on 19-20 June will give the participants an opportunity to experience Turkey’s “Safe Tourism” practices.

“ReTurkey” meeting will help observe on site all details a tourist will encounter as well as all safety measures taken under the “Safe Tourism Certification Program” from the airplane to the airport, transfer vehicle to the hotel.

As a part of the meeting, the Directorate General of State Opera and Ballet will organize a special concert at the Aspendos Ancient Theater.

Republic of Turkey Ministry of Culture and Tourism will be welcoming in Antalya ambassadors of the top countries sending tourists to Turkey and the international media to give the world a demonstration of the tourism services Turkey will render during the Novel Coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic as the first country in Europe to launch a safe tourism certification system.

Guests will be able to experience on site the safe tourism service with the “ReTurkey” program, led by the Minister of Tourism and Culture Mehmet Nuri Ersoy.

Minister Ersoy came together with guests and expressed their pleasure with having the chance to extend the Turkish hospitality to international guests in the first day of the meeting in Antalya, one the cities in Turkey the most visited, on 19-20 June.

Noting that they found a chance to demonstrate to the rest of the world through the ambassadors and the international media the trailblazing “Safe Tourism” measures taken by Turkey, Ersoy underlined that “Our Safe Tourism  Tourism Certification Program is among the firsts in the world in several respects.”

Adding that the program allowed them to show how seriously Turkey took the issue of safe tourism, Minister Ersoy continued:

“We would like take this opportunity to remind our guests that we will be looking forward to welcome their citizens to Turkey after the resumption of international flights. Observing the positive impression made by the measures we have taken on our guests further confirms the expediency of our Safe Tourism Certification program.”

“We considered all the details for our guests who want to have a holiday in our country”

Stating that the number of Safe Tourism Certification applications and certified facilities have increased rapidly, Minister Ersoy pointed out that the number of Covid-19 cases is quite low in touristic cities such as Aydın, Antalya and Muğla.

Minister Ersoy said, “Thanks to our thousands of healthcare professionals working here, these cities are also health centers as well as tourism,” and added:

“We thought of all the details for our guests who want to have a holiday in our country during the epidemic period. As of July 1st, we have created a health insurance package that includes Covid-19 for our foreign guests visiting our country. All health expenses up to 3 thousand, 5 thousand and 7 thousand Euros can be covered within the scope of 15, 19, and 23 Euro insurance packages that can be purchased through contracted airlines, various sales points before passport control, tour operators, and online channels. Our guests can feel comfortable, just like the Safe Tourism Certificate, we are thinking for all of the details on behalf of them.

“ReTurkey” meeting will be concluded with a special concert to be organized by the Directorate General of State Opera and Ballet at the Aspendos Ancient Theater.

Thanks to Turkey’s “Safe Tourism Certificate”, all guests will have peace of mind throughout their vacation in Turkey

Launched by the Republic of Turkey Ministry of Culture and Tourism and designed and implemented jointly by the public and the private sector in record-breaking time, the “Safe Tourism Certificate” introduces new measures across a wide spectrum ranging from transportation to accommodation, facility personnel to the passengers’ state of health.

Acibadem’s Assoc. Prof. Karaaltin shares his pioneering Plastic, Aesthetic & Reconstructive surgery methods in London, including world-first breakthrough method for facial paralysis

Turkey’s second largest private healthcare group Acibadem Healthcare held a public seminar with one of its leading surgeons, Assoc. Prof. Mehmet Veli Karaaltin, specialising in Plastic, Aesthetic and Reconstructive Surgery, at Marylebone Hotel in London on 18 April 2015.  Assoc. Prof. Karaaltin was among a team of surgeons successfully performing the world’s third full face transplant surgery and is well-recognised for his pioneering methods in the field that include a breakthrough method for facial paralysis that involves transferring a small muscle on the foot that functions similarly to the movement and tissue on the face and the world’s first lymph node transfer to the inguinal region.

World Firsts from Acibadem

One of Assoc. Prof. Karaaltin’s most outstanding successes is the world’s first special method he developed for operating on facial paralysis patients. Transferring a small muscle on the foot that functions similarly to the movement and tissue on the face, the procedure achieves with one surgery the results achieved in two surgeries previously. Commenting on the success of his method, Assoc. Prof. Karaaltin said: “We have performed this surgery on five patients so far and the results have been very successful. We have managed to achieve symmetry in eye, lip and nose movement. Our patients’ facial mimics become visible over the course of 4-5 weeks following the surgery through further physical therapy and acupuncture. The use of this foot muscle is a method first of its kind in the world. We now solely use this method for our facial paralysis patients and witness them make a faster return to their social lives.”

The procedure - that is performed on patients who develop facial paralysis at birth, following brain surgery or through an injury - has been attracting patients from all over the world to Acibadem hospitals.

Assoc. Prof. Karaaltin is also the first surgeon in the world to perform a lymph node transfer from the neck to the inguinal region and is among a team of surgeons successfully performing the world’s third full face transplant surgery.

Plastic and Aesthetic Surgery

In the field of Plastic and Aesthetic Surgery, Acibadem’s Assoc. Prof. Karaaltin also performs the advanced ultrasound liposuction method VASER that minimises bleeding and achieves the same results as a traditional liposuction through this less intrusive surgery option. Acibadem’s team of experts use the latest technology available, taking a 3D scan of the patient prior to surgery and calculating the changes to be made to more accurately perform the necessary changes at the operating table.

Treating Patients from Conflict Zones

Assoc. Prof. Karaaltin also works extensively with patients in the conflict zone arriving at Acibadem Hospitals from nearby countries through bilateral government agreements, having successfully treated many patients who have had severe trauma. Assoc. Prof. Karaaltin emphasised that working on such cases provides an immense learning experience and allows the team of surgeons at Acibadem hospitals to further increase their levels of expertise.

Turkey’s leading private healthcare provider, Acibadem Hospitals Group has highly-experienced specialist surgeons performing outstanding work in their fields. To find out more visit www.acibademinternational.com