On 6 January, as the Covid-19 crisis in Iran became worse and more Iranians died every day, Iran’s supreme leader Ali Khamenei banned the purchasing of globally approved vaccines, declaring: “Vaccines from the United States and the United Kingdom are not permitted in the nation. This is something I’ve told officials before, and it’s something I’m saying publicly now.”
Despite the fact that the regime has only vaccinated a small number of citizens, medical personnel, especially Iranian nurses, have been high-risk groups for the regime’s cruel and barbaric policies over the past 14 months.
The National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI), and the People’s Mujahedin of Iran (PMOI / MEK Iran), reported that the coronavirus death toll in 542 cities surpasses 294,000.
The state-run Resalat daily published an article titled “Iranian nurses, the definite victims of Covid-19” on 15 April. As per Resalat, “The suffering of Iranian nurses, as well as the delay in vaccinating this group of medical personnel, is overwhelming. They are fully depleted. Nurses in Iran have reached a breaking point of fatigue and desperation.”
In other countries, medical personnel is given free vaccines and other resources to help them prepare for a covid response. In Iran, however, not only do nurses lack adequate supplies, but the regime still charges medical personnel for vaccinations.
“There are about 170,000 to 180,000 nurses in the country, many of whom have contracted the virus,” Sharifi Moghadam stated on the Kar Va Kargar website on 7 April. In Iran, there is over 400,000 medical personnel. We must not endanger their wellbeing by delaying vaccination and then accusing the nurses of being martyrs! ……
For months of resistance against Covid-19, Iranian nurses pay one, two, or three million rials, and they pay this fee only to stay alive, which is very disturbing.”
“Job burnout rate, depression, and eventually some young doctors’ suicide has been unprecedented in the last 50 years as the world struggles with the Covid-19,” Setareyeh Sobh wrote in an article titled “Analysing the response to suicides among medical staff” on 12 May. In recent weeks, a number of interns and medical assistants in our country have committed suicide.”
On 21 December, Khamenei attempted to absolve himself of responsibility for the tragic situation concerning nurses by claiming that it was the responsibility of others. “Three of four years ago, I told the officials that you should hire about 30,000 nurses but they had problems and apologized.”
Poverty, according to the Deputy Minister of Education of the Medical Council Organization, is a factor suicide rate of specialized assistants, who said in an interview with ILNA on 12 May: “This group is one of the medical community’s underserved and hardworking segments, and residency is one of the most difficult periods in a doctor’s life in Iran because this group is dealing with multiple issues at the same time, including education, economy, and livelihood.
Very low salary, less than 40 million rials per month, and most assistants at this age have a family to care for, including their spouses and children.”
Due to poor living conditions and the financial collapse, a significant number of Iranian nurses have been forced to move in the 14 months after the outbreak of Covid-19, with estimates ranging from 500 per month.
The regime’s corruption is so widespread that it persists even in the midst of the pandemic.
Iranians in general, and medical personnel in particular, are facing severe financial hardships and are even committing suicide as a result of their misery. Meanwhile, the ayatollahs are abusing and wasting a large portion of the people’s wealth on terrorism and tyranny.
MEK Iran (follow us on Twitter and Facebook)
and People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran – MEK IRAN – YouTube
