A team of experts from the World Health Organization (WHO) landed in Tehran, Iran, March 2 to support the ongoing response to the coronavirus outbreak in the country.
The team will work with health authorities and other stakeholders to review ongoing readiness and response efforts, visit designated health facilities, laboratories and points of entry, and provide technical guidance.
Overall, the objectives of the mission are to identify transmission dynamics and at-risk populations; provide guidance on strengthening and scaling up the response to the ongoing outbreak, including agreement on priority control measures; and provide guidance on strengthened readiness for areas not yet affected by the outbreak.
As of March 2, COVID-19 cases totaling 1,501, including 66 deaths, have been reported in the country, 291 people have already been discharged from hospitals after regaining their health, the WHO said.
Cases with a travel history to the Islamic Republic of Iran have also been reported from Afghanistan, Canada, Lebanon, Pakistan, Kuwait, Bahrain, Iraq, Oman, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates, the WHO said.
A plane carrying the technical team members also contained a shipment of medical supplies and protective equipment to support over 15,000 health care workers, as well as enough laboratory kits to test and diagnose nearly 100,000 people.
