TEHRAN –A total of 40,023,330 people, that is 63 percent of the 70 percent target population, have so far taken part in the national health campaign aiming to be screened for high blood pressure and diabetes.

Out of the screened people, 763,069 were identified with probable hypertension, and 430,486 were identified with probable diabetes.

The first phase of the national health campaign started in November 2023 aiming to reduce deaths caused by non-communicable diseases.

The project with the theme of "earlier awareness, better care" will go on until January 20, ISNA reported.

The main objective of the campaign is to provide free health care for diabetic and hypertensive patients in the framework of the family physician program and to create an electronic health file for patients.

The identified patients will be checked every month or every three months by healthcare workers and doctors to receive free tests and medicines if needed.

Nowadays, health is one of the most essential human needs. Before the coronavirus pandemic, people may not have realized its importance, but this disease showed us how precious health is, Health Minister Bahram Einollahi said at a ceremony to unveil the Campaign.

“Maybe everyone thinks that our job is treatment, but it is not true. Our main duty is to prevent diseases and promote health.”

For this reason, a project called "national health campaign” started on November 11, 2023, and will continue till January 20.

Emphasizing the importance of improving health literacy, Einollahi said, “The level of literacy in the society has increased, and we expect this level to improve in the field of health as well. Also, we hope to manage having an electronic health file for every Iranian with their national identification code to record the history of illnesses in their family, their lifestyle, etc. so that their diseases and their reasons can be traced easily.”

He emphasized the campaign should include over 70 percent of the country's population; there is full preparation for its implementation in all universities of medical sciences, and everyone is mobilized to implement the plan.

Talking about the national health campaign, Einollahi said the campaign focuses on providing electronic health records for each family and screening them for diabetes and hypertension, and 70 percent of people are expected to participate in the campaign.

Einollahi added: “About 83 percent of all deaths registered in hospitals are caused by non-communicable diseases. Around 300,000 people die from cardiovascular diseases every year. Some 32 percent of people over 18 years old have hypertension, and 60 percent are unaware of their high blood pressure. Some 30,000 deaths per year occur due to diabetes in the country, which are all significant cases.” 

By implementing the national health campaign, half a million deaths from non-communicable diseases and 30,000 deaths from diabetes can be prevented, he added.

“We hope to be able to prevent half a million deaths due to cardiovascular disease and 30 thousand deaths due to diabetes till 2030 with timely awareness,” he said.

More than 220,000 deaths, that is, about 89 percent of deaths per year, are caused by factors such as blood pressure, blood sugar, obesity, and overweight, he concluded.

Over the past 20 years, deaths caused by non-communicable diseases (NCDs) have risen by 14.5 percent. In 2016, 304,400 premature deaths were caused by NCDs in Iran, according to WHO.

Some 0.5 percent of premature deaths happen before the age of 70 and 2 percent before the age of 50.

Einollahi went on to say that in the future, each individual with a national ID code, will have a health file. In 93 cities, health information is collected by healthcare providers. 

MT/MG