Abstract:

After the end of the National Struggle with the success of Turkey, the Health and Muavenet-i Intimate Council had entered into a series of activities to establish public health. The objective of the activities the national government was to build a society of healthy individuals and indirectly ensure the country’s political, social and economic development. Because of reasons such as the country’s low population, the unhealthy appearance of the nation, the prevalence of infectious diseases, the high rate of child death, the lack of social health knowledge, the government began to develop policies on public health since the 1920s. There were many elements that threatened the health of the community, but these elements were in the beginning of the infectious diseases. Therefore, since the establishment of the state, the government has produced policies to prevent infectious diseases such as frengi, verem, sickness, trahoma, difteria, tifo. Between 1920 and 1940, new regulations on urban and rural environmental conditions were introduced to prevent epidemic diseases, to ensure public health. During this period, health officials were sent to rural areas, public publications were released in order to increase public health knowledge, films were shown, vaccines were produced and implemented, a large portion of health propaganda was made by infectious diseases. The Central Health Center was founded in 1924 in Ankara, the first time in the country preventoryum, sanatoryum and sample hospitals were opened. Some of the laws adopted from 1921 to 1940 have been qualified as prevention of infectious diseases and supporting public health, and have been beneficial in the protection of public health. The aim of this study is to provide information about the place and importance of infectious diseases in the public health policies and infectious diseases seen in Turkey between 1920 and 1940.

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