Turkey fines, suspends over 100 obstetricians over high C-section deliveries
&imwidth=600&imheight=450&format=webp&quality=medium "Turkey fines, suspends over 100 obstetricians over high C-section deliveries")
File photo of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. Photograph: (AFP)
The Turkish government launched a campaign last year to address the country's declining birth rate under President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's "Decade of the Family" initiative.
Turkey's health ministry has reportedly fined over 100 obstetrician-gynaecologists for performing Caesarean sections, and also suspended them from duty and directed them to undergo mandatory training. Based on the available data from 2023, the country has recorded the highest rate of C-section births among the OECD's 38 nations, with nearly 615 such procedures out of every 1,000 live births.
Medical experts told AFP that C-sections are often time-efficient for medical staff as it takes around 30 minutes, compared with up to 12 hours for a traditional delivery. They also indicated that the procedure lowered the risk of legal action arising from childbirth complications and provided greater certainty for both the physician and the woman.
The Turkish government launched a campaign last year to address the country's declining birth rate under President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's "Decade of the Family" initiative. As part of the effort, the government has sought to encourage natural childbirth and increase oversight of delivery practices.
President Erdoğan has repeatedly advocated for vaginal births and aims to reduce the country's high number of elective Caesarean deliveries. In April 2025, the government prohibited private hospitals from performing elective C-sections unless there was a valid medical reason.
Warning issued to obstetricians
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According to BirGun, over 100 doctors have been fined for performing C-section surgeries, citing the data provided by medical associations across the country. The development has sparked a backlash from healthcare professionals. On its website, the Antalya Chamber of Physicians stated that obstetricians had been "issued with warnings, subjected to disciplinary investigations, temporarily suspended from practising, and compelled to attend antenatal training courses, on the grounds of high caesarean section rates across the country".
The Diken news website showed that one obstetrician at a private hospital in Sakarya, near Istanbul, was dismissed at the Health Ministry's request after being found to have performed a high number of Caesarean sections. The doctor was subsequently suspended for six months and directed to complete training at a state-run hospital. The report said the physician would be allowed to resume medical practice only after successfully passing an examination at the end of the training.
Dr Ayse Gultekingil, a senior official with the Turkish Medical Association (TTB), told BirGun that imposing penalties on doctors would not address the country's high Caesarean section rate, arguing that the issue stems from deeper structural factors rather than individual medical practitioners. "Turkey's caesarean birth rate exceeds 60 per cent. But the method of delivery reflects various problems within Turkey's healthcare system," she said.
