Deputy for Health at Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Kazem Farahmand, said that water and foodborne diseases show health level of the nation, WEBDA reported.

Speaking at a one-day seminar on management of water and foodborne diseases  and hospital infections, he stated, “Despite notable advances in controlling diseases, in particular communicable ones, and lowering their mortality rate, water and foodborne diseases are still challenging.”

Noting that these types of disease are disturbing and make crisis, he added, “Educating people and improving their awareness so that they might pay attention to health guidelines and preventive methods are the primary solutions to control water and foodborne diseases.”

Stating that Bioterrorism and its risks threaten Muslim nations, Dr. Farahmand stressed on bolstering Bioterrorism management in Iran as well as on monitoring cooking and distributing process of foods, especially at religious ceremonies.

Since visitors as well as domestic and foreign pilgrims are in Mashhad in Summer, the city is supported by Samen Health Center and controlling and managing water and foodborne diseases are of primary importance, according to him.

Also, infection specialist and Faculty Member at Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Arash Seifi, PhD, stressed on harnessing infectious diseases, saying, “Hospital infections dictate excessive costs on Iran’s health system.”

He added: “Hospital infections inflict people at hospital following their hospitalization.”

Noting that mortality rate of these infections is currently 50 percent, he maintained that 70 percent of these cases might be prevented via principal solutions.

Dr. Farahmand said that certain solutions to control hospital infections might be as following: timely detection of infections, their proper treatment, rational use of antibiotics to prevent drug resistance, environmental hygiene, appropriate disinfection, and proper care of certain patients.

Controlling cholera, its detection and treatment, detecting and treating diarrhea in children, microbial resistance, bioterrorism, botulism, detecting and treating bloody diarrhea, paying attention to hand-washing in controlling water and foodborne diseases and hospital infections, and,finally, systematic reporting of diseases were among some issues raised at the seminar.

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