The Evaluation Of Children Who Admitted To Our Hospital After The Earthquake In Terms Of Health Services

INTRODUCTION: The most vulnerable victims of natural disasters are children. Health professionals have made great efforts to improve the health and psychosocial conditions of children from this region after the great earthquake disaster we experienced. This study aimed to evaluate the earthquake victims who were referred to Ege University Faculty of Medicine, Department of Pediatrics, in terms of health services and share the results.


METHODS: Children who were transferred to Ege University Faculty of Medicine, Department of Pediatrics after the earthquake were included in this study. It was recorded from which province these children came from, age, gender, whether they were crushed or not, their physical health status, the duration of stay in the hospital, vaccination status, and whether there was a loss of parents.
RESULTS: Three earthquake victims were referred three from Hatay, one from Malatya, and one from Iskenderun. Of the children between 16 months and 16 years, 4 were boys, and 1 was a girl. In two of our patients, both lower extremities were amputated due to being under the rubble. The tetanus vaccine was administered to all children. It was learned that 4 of our five patients hospitalized lost their parents or siblings. The mean duration of stay in hospital of the patients was determined as 10.2 days.
DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION: It is crucial to determine earthquake survivors' needs during treatment, work as multidisciplinary teams, and make a follow-up plan after discharge.