Dr Syed Jaffar Hussain, WHO Representative to the Islamic Republic of Iran, speaking to the participants of the workshop. Photo credit: WHO/WHO Iran

13 November 2023, Tabriz, Islamic Republic of Iran – WHO, in partnership with the G5 Secretariat and WHO collaborating centres, ran a successful 6-day training of trainers workshop to enhance hospital management in Afghanistan.

The in-depth workshop ran from 28 October to 2 November 2023, with 16 senior managers from Afghanistan and 22 senior managers and officers from the Islamic Republic of Iran taking part. A team of 14 Iranian WHO-trained facilitators covered 8 crucial modules of hospital management: hospital governance; leadership and strategic thinking; quality improvement and patient safety; hospital information management systems; hospital financial management; emergency and disaster management; human resources management and training; and supply chain management.

This training of trainers initiative, held under the G5 action plan, was conducted in collaboration with the WHO Regional Office for the Eastern Mediterranean, WHO country offices in the Islamic Republic of Iran and Afghanistan, G5 Secretariat and 2 WHO collaborating centres: Iran University of Medical Science (IUMS) and Tabriz University of Medical Sciences (TUMS).

Notable attendees at the workshop’s launch included the chancellor of IUMS, WHO Representative and Head of Mission to the Islamic Republic of Iran, trainers from Afghanistan and the Islamic Republic of Iran, and the heads of WHO collaborating centres.

At the opening ceremony, Chancellor of IUMS Dr Abdolreza Pazouki emphasized the significance of training managers to improve hospital performance. He cited the Iranian health system’s success in treating international patients as a testament to its evolution.

Dr Syed Jaffar Hussain, WHO Representative and Head of Mission to the Islamic Republic of Iran, highlighted the success of cooperation between WHO collaborating centres and the Iranian health system, underscoring the robust Iranian health system and its potential to share experiences for mutual benefit.

Dr Ali Jannati, Vice-Chancellor for Development and Resource at TUMS, underlined the university’s commitment to promote capable health sector managers through knowledge transfer. Meanwhile, Dr Khodadad Khodadadi, Director of International Affairs, TUMS, expressed the institution’s readiness to involve Afghan universities in the Eurasian Universities Consortium.

On the sidelines of the course, Dr Hussain explored the TUMS facilities and capabilities by visiting its academic departments and hospitals.

A group photo of the workshop participants. Photo credit: WHO/WHO Iran

The G5, established in 2005 as an Iranian initiative, brings together Afghanistan, the Islamic Republic of Iran, Iraq, Pakistan and, most recently, Tajikistan to enhance subregional cooperation on health. The G5 mechanism, which operates under the slogan “Joint work for solving joint health problems”, provides a unique platform for collaboration among similar countries to improve the health situation regionally.