A ‘giant’ cooperation

Izmir University of Economics (IUE), the first foundation university of the Aegean Region, and Medical Park Izmir Hospital, the largest private healthcare institution in the region, joined forces with the goal of raising qualified physicians and healthcare workers needed by our country. Thanks to the cooperation that will ensure the development of Izmir and the realization of many special projects in the field of health, 333 students studying at IUE will have the opportunity to receive their practical education in the hospital environment starting from next year. Physicians working in the hospital will also be able to continue their academic careers by making use of all the facilities of the University.

The protocol signing ceremony for the cooperation (affiliation) that started a new era under the name of “Izmir University of Economics Medical Park Hospital” was held at the IUE Conference Hall. The agreement, which brings together two leading institutions in the field of health and education, was signed by Mahmut Özgener, President of IUE Board of Trustees, Surgeon Zafer Beken, Chairman of the Executive Board of Medical Park Hospital, Prof. Murat Aşkar, IUE Rector, Veysi Kubba, General Manager of  Medical Park Hospital, and Prof. Hakan Abacıoğlu, Dean of IUE Faculty of Medicine. Ömer Yahşi, Provincial Director of National Education, Selami Özpoyraz, Council Chairman of Izmir Chamber of Commerce (IZTO), Members of IUE Board of Trustees, academics, physicians and a large crowd of guests attended the ceremony. Special films about Izmir University of Economics and Medical Park Hospital were also screened at the ceremony.

WE WERE VERY METICULOUS

Speaking at the ceremony, the President of the Board of Trustees, Mahmut Özgener, said that it is very important that the two strong brands of Izmir come together. President Özgener said, “We are going through a special period where we witness that health is the most valuable thing. What we experienced in the Covid-19 period makes our cooperation more valuable and meaningful. We have researched the health institution with which our Faculty of Medicine will affiliate, we have been very meticulous about it. The fact that Medical Park Hospital being a reference hospital status in many respects, the high-level perspective of the hospital management on education and research was effective in our preference. Currently, the educational environments at Medical Park Hospital are fully compatible with the electronic infrastructure of our university. Both our students and academics will be able to directly access databases in our university library and benefit from all facilities through this infrastructure.”

GOOD NEWS ABOUT A ‘TECHNOTEST CENTER’

Heralding that the Technotest Center, where the advanced technical tests required by Izmir will be carried out, will also be opened in a short time, President Özgener said, “We attach great importance to cooperating and working together. As the stakeholder of important topics in Izmir, we have positioned Izmir University of Economics from the very first day in the first place that comes to mind in the search for a solution to the issues. We realize all our plans, investment targets, growth strategies based on this philosophy. As the University, we are opening the “Technotest Center” in Bilimpark, where the advanced technical tests that Izmir needs urgently can be performed. The center, which will be realized with an investment of approximately 11 million liras, will contribute to the R&D, production and innovation of the manufacturers and investors from Izmir in a wide range of fields from agriculture to industry. Izmir University of Economics started to develop projects in every field and produce added value for Izmir when it was integrated with Izmir. The University brainstormed and developed ideas on  every subject for the business world with webinar meetings, online seminars and chats during the quarantine days. Our engineering faculty has developed a self-cleaning mask for healthcare professionals to use. Patent application for mask has also been filed. The “Smart Disinfection Cabinet”, which sterilizes the clothes, tried on in the stores, with ozone and ultraviolet rays, was also developed by our university. Thanks to the cooperation with Medical Park, the largest health group in our region, we will be able to carry out similar studies in the field of health faster and on a larger scale.”

IT WILL NOT BE LIMITED BY MEDICINE

Surgeon Zafer Beken, Chairman of the Executive Board of Medical Park Hospital, stated that the cooperation will not be limited to the field of medicine and that they have started to cooperate in many fields. Surgeon Beken said, “Within the scope of cooperation, our hospital, which serves with the vision of being a pioneer and a reference in its field, and the University, which has a vision of providing quality education and training at a universal level; aim to educate physicians who have a holistic perspective, who are committed to ethical values, have good command of technology and do not compromise on quality. I want to say with pride that our cooperation will not be limited to the field of medicine. We have already started collaborating with Izmir University of Economics Faculty of Health Sciences, Faculty of Engineering, Faculty of Business and Faculty of Communication. We have taken important steps to make all processes in our hospital perfect from an academic and scientific perspective. We will offer students the opportunity to benefit from all the physical facilities of our hospital. They will have the opportunity to get to know each area,  particularly Bone Marrow Transplant Center, Oncology Center, Cardiology Center, IVF Center and Dizziness Center, and our reference centers such as Functional Medicine, in detail and participate in medical processes.”

WE WILL START AGAIN TO ORGAN TRANSPLANT AGAIN

Surgeon Beken continued his words as follows: “High-tech products used in the diagnosis and treatment of cancer disease; radiotherapy, computed tomography, MR, scintigraphy and many more imaging and laboratory examination possibilities are available in our hospital. Since 2011, we have served 217 thousand 837 patients in our Cardiology Center, where virtual angiography and coronary interventional procedures take place. We performed a total of 4,144 procedures at our IVF Center with 47 percent success rate. 816 transplants were carried out in 9 years at our Bone Marrow Transplant Center. We have served 208 thousand 178 patients in our Oncology Center. With the clinical research we have done since our establishment, 40 different studies have been carried out with 10 international institutions in 4 branches. Our Research and Development studies will increase even more in the new period. As the Organ Transplantation Coordinator of the Ministry of Health, I would like to give you the good news that we will start the organ transplant again very soon. We have seen that our hospital is well-equipped and enough in the pandemic period. All of our healthcare personnel worked day and night to manage the process correctly and still continue to work.”

WE ARE IN THE TOP 10 IN TURKEY

Stating that they are one of the most preferred 10 foundation universities in Turkey, Rector. Prof. Murat Aşkar said that Faculty of Medicine continues to grow rapidly. Prof. Aşkar said, “Our cooperation with Medical Park Izmir Hospital, which has proved its performance in many areas with the internationally accredited quality documents it has received, will add a new dynamism to our city Izmir. Within the scope of our cooperation, 57 new faculty members are joining our academic staff to be assigned to Medical Park Hospital. I would like to state that we are in a very harmonious cooperation with Medical Park management in this regard. 35 students in fourth year, who have been studying at the Faculty of Medicine,  will start their clinical education at Izmir University of Economics Medical Park Hospital as of September. In addition, 148 students from the Faculty of Health Sciences, 150 students from the  Vocational School of Health Services will be conducting their applied courses in Medical Park. We will develop short- and long-term projects to cover many different areas with Medical Park Hospital. We will be involved in research and development activities.”

46 THOUSAND PATIENTS FROM 77 COUNTRIES

Noting that they are the only health care provider with two major accreditation certificates in Turkey, Veysi Kubba, General Manager of IUE Medical Park Hospital, said, “Our hospital started to serve 9 years ago as the biggest hospital of the Aegean Region and Medical Park Hospitals Group. With our commitment to our mission to be a global healthcare provider, we continued our path by receiving international accreditation certificates such as JCI (International Accreditation Commission) and EFQM (European Quality Management Foundation). We are the only health institution in Turkey with these two important documents. As a brand hospital in health tourism, we accepted over 46 thousand foreign patients from 77 countries. This figure corresponds to 5 percent of the health tourism figures realized in Turkey's national scale. The cooperation of the two deep-rooted brands heralds a tremendous future. We are taking the first steps of a partnership that will be a reference medical school hospital for the world and a future entrepreneur and innovative physician candidate for the Nobel Medicine Awards. Organizations and countries that strategically invest in health and health education will be one step ahead. I wholeheartedly believe that the collaboration that takes place has a very strategic importance and will contribute to our country and Izmir.”

HOW WILL THIS COOPERATION BE BENEFICIAL?

- Students of Faculty of Medicine, Faculty of Health Sciences and Vocational School of Health Services will develop themselves in the hospital filled with state-of-the-art equipment and laboratory. The number of students, which is 333 in the first year, will increase every year.

- Future physicians and healthcare professionals will gain experience by seeing the cases in person and will learn the finest details of their professions from experts in their field.

- Joint projects will be carried out on many topics from software to design, engineering to health.

-Existing physicians at the hospital will be able to continue their academic careers at the University and direct their  careers as they wish.

- Contribution will be made to "national and domestic technology" studies carried out in our country with the aim of increasing the quality of health services.

- Izmir, which stands out in terms of health in the coronavirus period, will be at the center of the projects developed in this field. Special works will be carried out specially for Izmir.

LEADING UNIVERSITY

Izmir University of Economics, which was established as the first foundation university of the Aegean Region on April 14, 2001, has produced 16 thousand 200 graduates so far. Approximately 10 thousand students receive education at the university that continues its educational journey with 8 faculties, 5 vocational schools and 1 graduate school. All academics working at the university have an international career experience. With academic collaborations with 35 universities from 13 countries and Erasmus agreement with 173 universities, Izmir University of Economics, is among the most preferred 10 foundations universities in Turkey with the support of Izmir Chamber of Commerce (IZTO) with its 80 thousand members. Employment rate of IUE graduates, continuing their careers in 43 different countries, reaches 90 percent.

A BRAND IN HEALTH

Medical Park Hospital, which is the largest private hospital in the Aegean Region, is also a pioneer with its innovations and investments in the field of health. In the hospital serving in a 46 thousand 900 square meter closed area; there are 301 beds, 88 intensive care beds, and 11 operating rooms. A total of 114 physicians work in the hospital, and the number of employees is one thousand 226. Medical Park Hospital, reaching 1.5 million patients in 9 years, is first in the number of donors in Turkey in 2012, and the second in 2019. It is the only hospital in Turkey with two important international accreditation certificates such as JCI (International Accreditation Commission) and EFQM (European Quality Management Foundation).