Fingerprint report is against the law

The Ministry of Health, General Directorate of Public Health, sent a letter to provincial health directorates on April 21 under the title of “ Fingerprint Health Report for Hajj/ Umrah for Citizens Going on the Hajj Journey”. In this letter, it was stated that people whose fingerprints could not be taken should be directed to their family physicians for a health report and that arrangements were made in this direction in the e- report system.

Family physicians reacted to the practice in question and said, "There is no need for a report for obvious deficiencies, and the most appropriate approach would be to directly refer people for whom a decision cannot be made to forensic medicine or dermatology specialists. This unlawful and unscientific practice of reporting should be corrected as soon as possible."

Birlik Dayanışma Union Branch 3 President Dr. Hacı Yusuf Eryazğan reacted to the fingerprint report and evaluated the application as ''unscientific''. Eryazğan, who said ''The Ministry of Health continues to surprise us with a report that is unlawful, contrary to its own legislation and mind-boggling'', said that this report also contradicts the Ministry of Health circular on the Procedures and Principles of Health Reports. Eryazğan said, "There is no such report type in the circular published by the ministry. But unfortunately, wherever an institution is in trouble, the ministry takes on the solution itself."

WE ARE NOT A REPORT CENTER

Reminding that Saudi Arabia requested fingerprints to be taken from those who went to Hajj and Umrah due to a special request, Eryazğan continued as follows: ''We were receiving feedback about the fact that fingerprints could not be read properly, devices did not work properly or personnel and machines at this point could not be read properly, especially for our patients over a certain age. In terms of determining this, there is no training or publication by any medical school graduate to make decisions regarding fingerprints, other than forensic medicine and criminal examinations. But the ministry put this on us. There is no literature or scientific infrastructure regarding what family physicians should look at, how they should comment, how they should make a decision. There is an imposition that family physicians should act as experts on an unknown issue and give a definitive opinion on this issue. Family physicians are not an institution that covers the mistakes of the reporting center and other institutions. The biggest injustice that can be done is to include this in the e-report in such a frivolous way, saying 'I did it, it happened' and directing citizens to family physicians is the biggest injustice. We do not accept such an imposition.''

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SHIP IT

While the Istanbul Family Physicians Association made a statement saying, "Family physicians should not have any responsibility in the health report requested in cases where fingerprints cannot be taken from people before Hajj and Umrah," the Federation of Family Physicians Associations made the following assessment in summary:

"When the relevant legislation is examined, it is seen that family physicians are not authorized to take fingerprints, and that the Physics Department is responsible for determining whether fingerprints can be taken or not, according to the Forensic Medicine Institution Law No. 2659, and family physicians do not have any authority or duty in this regard. Considering these reasons, our family physician members should only fulfill the duties they are authorized to by legislation and whose limits are clearly defined, and we also recommend that they use their referral authority for all situations that exceed their authority and are undecided."