TEHRAN – The Ministry of Health inaugurated 164 medical centers across the country on Tuesday in memory of the healthcare workers who have lost their lives fighting the coronavirus pandemic.

Many healthcare workers lost their lives or mourned their colleagues in the fight against COVID-19 disease and in the path toward saving the lives of people and patients, Health Minister Saeed Namaki said.

They worked around the clock to significantly control the epidemic and minimize the number of deaths, he added.

In this difficult struggle, the increase in the disease caused a large number of doctors and nurses to fall ill and leave the service cycle, and their colleagues had to work three shifts with so that no to leave any patients untreated, he noted.

Maryam Hazrati, the deputy health minister for nursing, said in May that some 65 percent of 200,000 nurses in the country was at the forefront of coronavirus fight.

The World Health Organization (WHO) has praised the Iranian nurses for playing an effective role in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic during the 8th “Triad Meeting” of the International Council of Nurses (ICN), the International Confederation of Midwives (ICM), and the WHO which was held online on June 16-18.

Although hero reminds us of mystical creatures in legends that did extraordinary things, in our world, the heroes are just as worthy of admiration because they’re really showing an uncanny ability to persevere despite the most extreme circumstances and to do so with humility and dedication.

Medical staff, environmental defenders, doctors without borders, and those delivering humanitarian aid to refugees are the real-life heroes that the world needs more of them.

The Iranian medical community has repeatedly succeeded in surviving the people in the floods and earthquakes, and so on, but this time the test is bigger and broader.

They may also bear considerable mental stress as well as those at the front line of war events, in addition to the fear they feel about disease transmission when in contact with their family and loved ones.

We can help them by choosing to stay at home and not to be a chain in disease transmission will also be much helpful.

However, the government and decision-makers must also try best to set the most efficient policies in the fight against the disease and give the medical staff what they need to survive this crisis as long as we will need them in case the next pandemic arrives.

FB/MG