Covid-19 Training for El Salvador Health Personnel

Under the Emergency Medicine Capacity Building Program (ATKAP), Turkish Cooperation and Coordination Agency (TİKA), organized "Methods of Combating Covid-19" distance education program for El Salvadoran healthcare personnel in cooperation with the El Salvador Agency for International Cooperation (ESCO) and Health and Civilization Association.

The ATKAP-COVID-19 Combating Methods training program conducted by TİKA was prepared by 13 specialist physicians working at various universities and hospitals in Turkey, and 35 healthcare professionals from El Salvador participated in the four-day online training program. During training, Turkey's practices in the fight against coronavirus were explained in detail, knowledge and experience were shared on the reasons for the emergence of COVID-19, mode of spread, clinical features and radiological findings in patients, treatment applications for adult and pediatric patients, intensive care applications, prevention methods and contact patient follow-up, hospital management issues.

Kırşehir Ahi Evran University Vice Rector and Dean of Faculty of Medicine Prof. Dr. Mustafa Kasım Karahocagil, Ambassador of El Salvador to Ankara Agustín Vásquez Gomez, TİKA’s Vice President Dr. Rahman Nurdun and El Salvador Agency for International Cooperation (ESCO) Director General Karla De Palma attended the opening session of the training program.

In his opening speech, Ambassador of El Salvador to Ankara Agustín Vásquez Gómez said that they have been working to improve bilateral relations since December 2020, when the Embassy of El Salvador in Ankara was opened. In addition, Gómez stated that this training, organized in cooperation with TİKA and ESCO, will contribute to the development of relations between two countries and thanked the Republic of Turkey and TİKA for providing this opportunity.

TİKA’s Vice President Dr. Rahman NURDUN stated that TİKA has successfully implemented a total of 198 projects in 77 countries and supported 2.171.358 people, including projects such as emergency humanitarian aid support, medical equipment support, training programs, mask production facilities, within the scope of the fight against COVID-19. NURDUN stated that nearly 500 health workers were trained in different modules in the field of health and expressed his satisfaction with the cooperation with El Salvador Agency for International Cooperation (ESCO).

El Salvador Agency for International Cooperation (ESCO) Director General Karla De PALMA stated that within the scope of the training, El Salvadoran healthcare professionals had the opportunity to learn about the important experiences Turkey had on COVID-19, and they wanted to carry out different projects in cooperation with TİKA and help improve relations between the two countries.

TİKA plans to continue its "Methods of Combating Covid-19" training in different countries by sharing Turkey's experiences in the health sector with all around the world through the ATKAP program.