Place of Gratitude and Remembrance for Medical Workers

You are in the Sıhhiye neighborhood of the capital, Ankara. 

This neighborhood, where the first public and healthcare buildings of the young Turkish Republic rose starting in 1926, was designed by the architect Hermann Jansen as a ‘hospital’ district. The 1925 Lörcher plan and the 1932 Jansen plan both emphasized the future preservation of Ankara’s riverbeds as green spaces and ventilation green belts with connecting roads.

Today, the green belt of the İncesu Stream, on which you are located, continues its continuity, especially in the neighboring Kurtuluş Park (formerly known as Fidanlık) and in the green spaces of Sıhhiye and Abdi İpekçi Park.

Sıhhiye, strengthened by the presence of health institutions, medical education institutions, and health and pharmaceutical material providers, is today located at the most accessible point of the capital, Ankara.

The COVID-19 virus outbreak, which started in October 2019, has had a distressing impact on our people and urbanites in Turkey, as in all societies, with irreparable losses. The pandemic has opened deep wounds, and in the fight against this global epidemic, a very high number of losses have occurred among doctors, nurses, caregivers, pharmacists, related healthcare professionals, and patients.

Ankara Metropolitan Municipality has dedicated the park and memorial to all healthcare professionals who worked selflessly and devotedly in this fight and gave their lives without a second thought. This park and memorial are a form of gratitude from the citizens of the capital, Ankara, to our healthcare professionals.

Sıddık Güvendi and Cihan Sevindik, the architects of the “Place of Gratitude and Remembrance for Health Workers,” whose project was obtained within the scope of “Ankara by Competition,” have shaped the idea of revitalizing İncesu Creek and transforming its surroundings into a green area. They aim to convey the names of our doctors and health workers who sacrificed their lives to the future with a monumental identity perimeter.

With endless gratitude to all of our healthcare professionals for their dedication and devotion to human life…

A. Cengizkan