Tehran – Supported by key representatives of the World Health Organization (WHO), Ministry of Health, Faculty of Health, Non-Governmental Organizations, and palliative care providers, develop technical papers on palliative care, presented in the 72nd session of the WHO Regional Committee (RC72) resolution.
The resolution supports the goal of improving access to care and achieving universal health compensation, and presents crucial steps to integrating palliative care into the community-wide health system, announced by the website in a May 27 press release.
The event, hosted by the WHO Country Office, took place on May 21st. The WHO Regional Office of the HO Regional Mediterranean (EMRO) and the WHO Country Office in the region have convened a diverse group of national stakeholders to enhance palliative care in Iran.
The joint meeting aims to build a unified understanding of the current state of palliative care in Iran and chart courses that are consistent with the directions of the proposed palliative care resolution.
Participants used the WHO regional framework for palliative care to assess strategic interventions and progress indicators in six key areas: governance and policy, funding, service delivery, medicine, education and training and research and monitoring.
Their findings were summarised in a detailed color-coded matrix, highlighting some notable results. These include establishing a national palliative care strategy, integrating specialized palliative care units or teams in high and general hospitals, and including essential palliative care medicines in the national list of Iran’s Islamic Republic.
Graduate training and certification in palliative care are also available, focusing on operational and implementation research in this field.
Stakeholders outlined strategic priorities for the next two years. These include the full implementation of national strategies, integration of palliative care into universal health insurance, revision of legal frameworks for revision of legal frameworks, ensuring access to safe and regulated care and medicines, and setting national standards for training and accreditation.
Although several challenges continue, especially in areas that require long-term investment and deeper policy reform, the conference highlighted the collective resolve to move forward. This joint effort reaffirms Iran’s Islamic Republic’s commitment to embedding palliative care as an integral part of its health care system.
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