An Overview of the Health Services Provision in the 2017 Kermanshah Earthquake

Abstract

Objective: Iran, in terms of disasters, is among the top 10 countries in the world. Therefore, timely coordination and provision of rescue, transport, and treatment services after disasters are of particular importance. This study aimed to investigate and provide a short report on the provision of rescue, transport, and treatment services after the 2017 earthquake in Kermanshah.

Methods: This was a review and a descriptive study conducted using the analysis of documents and news published on valid Iranian sites and reports of some service providers in 2017 after the earthquake in Kermanshah.

Results: The most important strengths of post-earthquake services were the military force's cooperation, people's support, sending the popular aid and donations to earthquake areas, and the tremendous national support and religious sympathy among the people. Sending the popular aid and donations was such that they resulted in the blockage of communication routes, heavy traffic on the roads, and disrupted the relief and rescue efforts process. However, the most important weaknesses in the provision of services after this earthquake were the lack of preparedness of the government systems and the lack of orderly management for appropriate assistance and relief and, therefore, there was an inappropriate distribution of popular aid and donations among the earthquake victims.

Conclusion: Proper coordination and service delivery after unexpected events in Iran have a considerable distance to reaching the desired point. Unfortunately, similar problems had also occurred in other earthquakes such as the Bam and Rudbar earthquakes. The repetition of these problems indicates the authorities' lack of readiness and commitment to troubleshoot weaknesses in their emergency response plan. Therefore, it is necessary for government officials to have more preparedness in all related affairs and aspects. (Disaster Med Public Health Preparedness. 2019;13:691-694).

Keywords: Iran; earthquake; health services.