02.05.2025 15:52
The cardiology coordinator Hande Yolaç, who negotiated the price of a stent with a patient during an angioplasty procedure at a private hospital in Istanbul, has been sentenced to 1 year, 1 month, and 10 days in prison, with the announcement of the verdict being postponed. It was also decided to release the detained defendant Yolaç along with the verdict.
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On January 13, 2025, an incident occurred at a Private Family Hospital in Istanbul, where an indictment was prepared against the cardiology coordinator Hande Yolaç, who was negotiating the price of a stent during the angiography procedure with the patient Hayrettin Erden. In the prepared indictment, a prison sentence of 3 to 10 years was requested for Yolaç for the crime of 'fraud by taking advantage of a person in a dangerous situation or difficult conditions.'
"I HAVE NOT TOUCHED ANY MONEY"
A decision was announced regarding Hande Yolaç, who was tried under the indictment. In the hearing held at the Bakırköy 17th High Criminal Court, the detained defendant Hande Yolaç and the complainant Hayrettin Erden were present. In her defense during the hearing, the detained defendant Yolaç stated, "I had been working at the Private Family Hospital for 2.5 months, and my job was to inform patients. I provide price information and explain the processes. The patient was admitted to the hospital, and necessary tests were done while I was not there. That day, the patient was supposed to undergo angiography. I wanted to explain the necessary processes to him. According to my job instructions, I explain the procedure and process to the patient. Normally, the patient's relative comes to me, and I provide the information in my room, but the complainant also communicated that he wanted to get information. I do not take the money; I only provide information. I have not touched any money. As a result of the information, the patient wanted the stent provided by the state to be placed," she defended.
"WHEN THE STENT BARGAINING STARTED..."
The complainant Hayrettin Erden stated that he was referred to the hospital due to chest pain, saying, "I was admitted. Initially, when the nurse put electrodes on me, I refused treatment. The hospital official delayed me. Later, the doctor came. I thought I would be intervened immediately, but no procedure was done until the morning. In the morning, the doctor said that three stents would be placed. I said, 'It's up to you.' No information was provided to me other than the documents signed by my wife outside. I was taken to the anesthesia department; I was on the table. The doctor asked me whether I wanted it from the arm or the groin. He said there was a difference between the two methods and that he would use his discount. While asking these questions, the defendant Hande Yolaç was next to me. The defendant told me she would give me a price. When the stent bargaining started, I said at that moment, 'Just put whatever the state provides for me.' After two stents were placed, I was taken to the intensive care unit. Again, on the day I was to be discharged, the defendant came to me and said we would go to the accounting department. I was supposed to pay 5,000 TL to the accounting department, but they said I needed to pay 7,000 TL. We insisted on requesting an invoice, and in the end, they gave us a document written on A4 paper in the form of a receipt, and we asked for a stamp to be placed on it. I paid 7,000 TL. Actually, my complaint was about the hospital management; I am not complaining about the defendant," he stated.
PRISON SENTENCE REQUESTED FROM 3 TO 10 YEARS
The public prosecutor, who presented his opinion, stated that the defendant, who was working as a cardiology coordinator in the hospital, began to talk about the characteristics and prices of the stents at a time when the complainant was in a weak state of will under difficult conditions while waiting for the angiography procedure. It was stated in the opinion that the complainant, who was lying on a stretcher and undergoing angiography, requested the free stent covered by SGK, and the angiography procedure was continued from the arm, and two stents covered by SGK were placed on the complainant. The public prosecutor noted that despite the emergency health service being provided, the hospital unjustly profited by charging the complainant 7,000 TL, which should not have been charged. It was also stated that the defendant committed the crime of qualified fraud by corrupting the will of the complainant through fraudulent actions. It was expressed in the opinion that the complainant's damage was compensated during the investigation phase. A prison sentence of 3 to 10 years was requested for Hande Yolaç for the crime of 'fraud by taking advantage of a person in a dangerous situation or difficult conditions.'
1 YEAR 1 MONTH 10 DAYS OF IMPRISONMENT
After the opinion was presented, the court announced its decision, sentencing the defendant Hande Yolaç to 1 year, 1 month, and 10 days in prison for the crime of 'fraud by taking advantage of a person in a dangerous situation or difficult conditions' with a reduction applied. Since the defendant had no prior criminal record, had compensated the damage, and there was a belief that she would not commit a crime again, it was decided to postpone the announcement of the verdict against Yolaç. It was also decided to release Yolaç along with the verdict.
FROM THE INDICTMENT
In the indictment prepared by the Bakırköy Chief Public Prosecutor's Office, it was stated that an investigation was initiated after images of the defendant Hande Yolaç negotiating prices during the emergency intervention of the complainant Hayrettin Erden at the private hospital in Bahçelievler on January 13, 2025, were published in the press. It was explained in the indictment that the complainant Hayrettin Erden was urgently referred and admitted to the intensive care unit, and during the angiography procedure performed on him, it was stated that he was in a weak state of will under difficult conditions while waiting on the stretcher. In the indictment, it was recorded that the defendant Hande Yolaç claimed that the angiography procedure to be performed from the arm would be healthier and that there was a price difference, and that she requested a fee that should not have been requested according to the regulations, leading to the collection of 7,000 TL from the complainant despite the health service being provided free of charge, thus committing the crime of 'fraud by taking advantage of a person in a dangerous situation or difficult conditions.' A prison sentence of 3 to 10 years was requested for the defendant Hande Yolaç for the crime of 'fraud by taking advantage of a person in a dangerous situation or difficult conditions.'
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