Flexibility and pragmatism in promoting health: an experience of synergy between health and religion in the Islamic Republic of Iran

Abstract

In the Islamic Republic of Iran, religion has traditionally played a central role in the lives of the people. Following the Islamic Revolution in 1979, it has also become integral to the country's governance. Since the Revolution, an exceptional synergy has arisen between the domain of religion and the health sector in the development of family planning policies, which have resulted in dramatic changes in population growth and fertility: the population growth rate decreased from 3.9% (1986) to 1.2% (2000) and total fertility from 6.8 (1984) to 2.1 (2000). The extraordinary aspect of this experience is that the position of religious authorities changed from one of opposition to one of active promotion of family planning. This paper describes the establishment and course of family planning programmes in Iran and makes use of interviews with two main protagonists of this experience (Dr Alireza Marandi -Minister of Health 1984Health -1989Health , 1993Health -1997; Dr Hossein Malekafzali -former Deputy Minister of Health). It is hoped that dissemination of this experience outside of the Islamic Republic of Iran will encourage the development of similar dialogue and synergy between religion and health in other countries. Flexibilité et pragmatisme dans la promotion de la santé : une expérience de synergie entre la santé et la religion en République islamique d'Iran RÉSUMÉ En République islamique d'Iran, la religion a traditionnellement joué un rôle central dans la vie de la population. Après la Révolution islamique de 1979, elle est aussi devenue partie intégrante de la gouvernance du pays. Depuis lors, une synergie exceptionnelle s'est dégagée entre le domaine de la religion et le secteur de la santé pour l'élaboration des politiques de planification familiale, ce qui a conduit à des changements radicaux en termes de croissance démographique et de fécondité : le taux de croissance démographique a diminué, passant de 3,9 % (1986) à 1,2 %

Cooperation of ordinary citizens with urban management in the third wave of Covid-19 outbreak in Iran

“…On the other hand, statistics showed that the highest level of implementation was related to personal hygiene items, such as Wearing a mask when in public, handwashing, and covering mouse while sneezing or coughing, which is contrary to the results of other countries such as Greece (Kamenidou, Stavrianea, & Liava, 2020) or Japan (Machida et al, 2020a;Machida et al, 2020b) and can be attributed to existing cultural differences. Because in the Islamic Republic of Iran, personal health education and the need to observe it have been emphasized from the most elementary courses based on teachings of Islam and have affected Iranians' health customs (Adams & Manenti, 2012).…”

Hello from the other side

“…Between the 2005 and 2010 time period, the healthcare system of Iran was well established and innovative, especially in the case of birth control promotion (40,143,147). After the 1979 Islamic Revolution, the cooperation between religious authorities and health officials resulted in the development of a comprehensive family planning education and promotion programme which provided free contraceptive methods and health guidance by trained staff starting in 1988 (147,152,153). Healthcare personnel promote the use of birth control methods to all adult married couples who visit healthcare facilities, which also includes Afghan migrants (147).…”

“…Healthcare personnel promote the use of birth control methods to all adult married couples who visit healthcare facilities, which also includes Afghan migrants (147). The implementation of the birth control programme in Iran was highly successful, resulting in a decrease in the fertility rate from 6.8% in 1984 to 2.1% in 2000 and an increase in the use of birth control methods from 49% in 1989 to 73.8% in 2006 (152,153). Recently, however, the future of Iran's progressive birth control programme has been uncertain, as Ayatollah Ali Khamenei criticised the programme as too Western and stressed the objective of boosting the Iranian population.…”

“…This increased awareness could be explained by the conditions of the human right to health. According to official sources, healthcare, health-related information, and more specifically, birth control methods and family planning information were available for Afghani migrants in Iran (147,152,153). Afghans could also officially access basic medical care without direct discrimination by migrant status, including maternal and childcare and good quality family planning programmes developed by healthcare professionals (143,147).…”

“…Afghans could also officially access basic medical care without direct discrimination by migrant status, including maternal and childcare and good quality family planning programmes developed by healthcare professionals (143,147). The Irani government established a comprehensive family planning education and promotion programme that provided free contraceptives, health guidance by trained staff, and access to information promoting birth control use to all adult married couples visiting healthcare facilities, including Afghans (147,152,153). Furthermore, the Irani health officials cooperated with religious authorities to increase the acceptability of their family planning programme.…”