The Sema Hospital, specializing in the treatment of heart disease, was officially inaugurated over the weekend in Almaty, the largest city in Kazakhstan.
The Turkish hospital was available for surgical procedures six months ago, even though it had not been officially opened. The inauguration ceremony saw Turkish Deputy Prime Minister Bekir Bozdağ, his Kazakh counterpart, Aset O. Issekeshev, hospital officials and diplomats in attendance. The hospital officials announced at the opening that their plan is to serve 80 million people in the Central Asian region.
Ruhi Toraman, the chief physician at Sema Hospital in Almaty, told the attendees at the opening that the hospital employs the latest in medical technology and that its goal is to give patients the best treatment possible in Kazakhstan. He said the Sema Hospital Group has plans to open more branches in the country and that the Sema Hospital in Almaty hopes to become a university hospital in the future.
A large number of people in Kazakhstan suffer from heart and coronary disease, according to Toraman, and 3,500 people in the country are currently on a waiting list for heart surgery, which shows the urgent need of a hospital that can provide such operations. “Since we are a private hospital, we are working on getting permission from the government to perform surgery on people who have government health insurance as well,” Toraman stated.
“The Sema Hospital Group has opened the way for the health sector in Central Asia, where more investments and cooperation between the countries is needed,” Toraman stated. According to Toraman, the existence of Turkish hospitals and schools is also attracting many Turkish businessmen to move to Kazakhstan, and these kinds of services also help them to convince their families as well.
Bozdağ commented on the excellent reputation Sema hospitals enjoy in Turkey and said, “I congratulate the administration for bringing the great services the hospital provides in Turkey to Kazakhstan, with whom we have strong historical and cultural ties.”
Mustafa Özcan, the CEO of the Sema Hospital Group, said at the opening that Turkish entrepreneurs started going to Kazakhstan after 1990 and that they have improved many things, especially education, in the country. “Our hospital aims to provide a service to all people living in the entire Central Asian region,” he stated, and added, “We want to share our experience with the people of Kazakhstan, and I thank everyone who has supported us.”
Published on Today's Zaman, 25 October 2011, Tuesday
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