Before you start

A work, residence or student permit application in progress — the permit unlocks SGK and a health-system ID
A Yabancı Kimlik Numarası (YKN), issued with the permit — needed for e-Devlet, appointments and e-Nabız
A Turkish address and phone number for insurer paperwork, e-Devlet SMS and hospital registration
Compliant private cover for the first permit if you are NOT employed — no policy means no permit

Step-by-step

1
If an employer is hiring you, confirm the SGK start date with HR
Enrolment is legally from your first working day and the employer files it — but ask HR to confirm it has been done and to give you the SGK registration, because the entitlement only becomes usable once you appear in the system. SGK covers you, a spouse and children under 18, gives near-free access to state hospitals and family health centres, and covers SGK-contracted private hospitals for a top-up fee.
Via employerWho: Your employer's HR teamFrom day one of employment
2
If you are NOT employed, buy private insurance for the permit
Every non-employed first-year resident must show a valid private policy at the residence-permit appointment; SGK does not count for the initial permit. Since April 2025 the policy must meet raised minimums and must state explicitly that it is valid for residence-permit applications. Buy a 'yabancı ikamet' compliant plan from a Turkish insurer (Allianz, Axa, Anadolu, Aksigorta). You can only opt into SGK voluntarily after one continuous year of residence.
OnlineWho: You (or a broker)Same day to one day~US$150-250/year for a basic compliant policy; more with age or comprehensive cover
3
Register on e-Devlet, then learn where to go for what
With your YKN you can use e-Devlet, book public appointments through the Ministry of Health's MHRS system (mhrs.gov.tr, the app, or ALO 182) and read your records on e-Nabız. In Adana the routing is: family health centres and district state hospitals for routine care; Adana Şehir Hastanesi for most secondary and much tertiary work; and Çukurova Üniversitesi's Balcalı hospital for anything genuinely complex, because it is the region's referral centre rather than just the city's.
Mobile appWho: YouRegistration minutes; public appointment lead times vary from days to weeksPublic: free or nominal with SGK · Private specialist visit ~US$25-100 self-pay
4
Treat the summer as a medical season
With an average August high of 34.8°C, a record of 46.7°C and high plain humidity, heat is the dominant seasonal health factor here. Practically: drink far more than feels necessary, restructure exercise to early morning or after dark, watch elderly relatives and small children closely, and know that heat exhaustion presents as confusion and nausea rather than simply feeling hot. Dial 112 for an ambulance; emergency care (acil) at state hospitals is provided to everyone regardless of insurance or status.
In personWho: YouMay to October112 emergency care free
5
Know pharmacies, and that a foreign prescription is not valid
Pharmacies (eczane) are everywhere, pharmacists advise on minor ailments, and many medicines are cheap and available over the counter. A prescription written abroad cannot be dispensed here, though a Turkish doctor's prescription is inexpensive to obtain and to fill. Outside hours a rotating nöbetçi eczane is always open; search 'nöbetçi eczane' plus your district.
In personWho: YouImmediateMany common medicines a few dollars

Documents you’ll need

Passport and work/residence/student permit (or in-progress application)
Yabancı Kimlik Numarası (foreigner ID number)
SGK registration from your employer, if employed
Private policy marked 'valid for residence-permit applications', if you are not employed

Things most newcomers don’t know

Balcalı is a regional referral centre, not a city hospital — which is why serious care does not leave Adana.

Çukurova Üniversitesi's teaching hospital serves as the tertiary referral point for the eastern Mediterranean region, so complex cases from a wide catchment come here rather than going to Ankara. For a city with almost no foreign population that is a genuinely reassuring fact, and it is the strongest single argument for Adana on any family checklist.

Source: Çukurova Üniversitesi Balcalı Hastanesi; Adana Şehir Hastanesi (T.C. Sağlık Bakanlığı)

Ask HR to confirm the SGK filing, not just to promise it.

The entitlement starts on your first working day in law, but you can only use it once you actually appear in the system. New hires turn up at a hospital, find no record and pay privately for something they were covered for. A screenshot of the SGK registration is worth asking for in week one.

Source: SGK employer registration procedure

Heat illness is the local occupational hazard, and it is the one newcomers underestimate every single year.

People arriving from temperate climates treat 40°C as an extreme version of a hot day rather than as a different category of thing. With the Çukurova's humidity, sweat evaporates poorly and the body's cooling mechanism works less well than the same temperature would allow inland. The people who get into trouble are usually the ones who tried to keep their normal outdoor routine through their first July.

Source: MGM Adana normals; regional public-health guidance

Knowing your building is part of your health picture in this province, not a separate worry.

AFAD lists Adana among the eleven provinces struck on 6 February 2023. Alongside the ordinary health questions, knowing your building's construction date, whether it has been retrofitted, which floor you are on and where the exits are is the single highest-value preparation available — and after 2023 it is something local colleagues will discuss with you readily rather than think odd.

Source: AFAD — 6 February 2023 Kahramanmaraş earthquakes bulletin

Common mistakes to avoid

Assuming your employer filed the SGK enrolment without checking, then paying privately for covered care.
Arriving ahead of a job and budgeting for SGK — you cannot opt in voluntarily until you have held residence for a full year.
Keeping a temperate-climate outdoor routine through your first Adana July.
Trying to fill a foreign prescription as written; it is not legally valid, though a Turkish doctor's prescription is cheap.

Some of this may be out of date. Spotted something inaccurate? Help us keep it right for the next newcomer.