The Istanbul Leprosy Hospital has 60 beds (10 for dermatology). As of July, 1996, there were 42 patients (26 males, 16 females), all of whom are single. Two of these are children. The number increases in winter. There are also eight couples living in the hospital, of whom only the husband has had leprosy. These eight men work in different parts of the hospital and are paid by the Association for Leprosy Relief Work. These couples have a total of 14 children (7 boys and 7 girls), none of whom have had leprosy.
Istanbul Leprosy Hospital also has an outpatient clinic, specialised eye care, a shoe workshop, surgery, physiotherapy and dental units serving both inpatients and outpatients. There are four dermatologists who, for the last five years, are also seeing skin diseases in order to integrate the service and raise funds. With continuous efforts, the team of this hospital is among the well-known reference centres for dermatology.(From information supplied by Dr Turkan Saylan and Dr Ayse Yuksel, July 1996)