The World Health Organization has introduced a comprehensive primary health care (PHC) course on its Academy platform to promote inclusive prevention and modernize traditional health approaches. Given Iran's experience in health-network development and the workforce protection requirements cited under Article 147 of the Labour Law, the report presents PHC as a foundation for industrial HSE management, occupational disease prevention and lower treatment costs.
International and Occupational Health Desk — Health as a fundamental right depends on timely, locally accessible, high-quality services without financial hardship. Nearly five decades after the 1978 Alma-Ata Declaration, uneven implementation and misunderstanding of PHC prompted WHO to develop an accessible modern resource and a common language for health managers and specialists.
WHO Director-General Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus emphasized that PHC remains widely misunderstood despite its importance. Universal health coverage requires shifting from treatment toward early care and prevention.
Dr. Kalipso Chalkidou, Director of WHO's Department of Performance, Financing and Delivery as described in the source, highlighted member-state agreement as an opportunity. Shared understanding can improve quality of life and system performance. Applying PHC in clinics, educational settings, policy rooms and workplaces is a shared responsibility. The report cites more than 3,000 participants from 140 countries in the first months.
WHO Academy course structure
The free, self-paced multimedia course is described as lasting 90 minutes with five modules:
– Why PHC matters: transforming health from treatment-led to prevention-led approaches;
– Three PHC components: comprehensive services, multisector policy and empowered people and communities;
– Strategic and operational levers: resources, logistics and technology for wider coverage;
– Political-economy-based transformation: risks, policy barriers and compassionate leadership;
– Case studies and local adaptation, with a WHO Academy completion certificate described in the source as a WHO Academy Award.
Applying PHC to Iranian HSE and labour and health systems
Occupational-health specialists see the course as an opportunity to update public- and private-sector infrastructure:
– Workers' health houses and Article 147: the source states that enterprises with more than 50 workers must establish a worker health house or workplace health unit under joint labour and health regulations. PHC can shift these units from basic assistance toward harmful-agent monitoring, ergonomics and primary prevention.
– Occupational disease and workforce deterioration: musculoskeletal disorders, work-related stress and respiratory disease from dust and chemicals account for substantial disability and insurance claims. PHC within HSE can support hazard recognition and source control.
– Health economics: primary care in refineries, mines, automotive plants and construction sites can reduce sickness absence, incidents, hospital admissions and referrals, improving productivity and supply-chain sustainability.
– Integration with the national network: Iran's behvarz-based primary-care network provides an established model. Connecting it with factory occupational-health networks can bridge the gap between urban comprehensive health centers and workplace health units.
Actions for HSE managers and specialists
– Join the course through WHO Academy to update occupational safety, health, medical and environmental knowledge.
– Review health-risk assessments to include psychosocial self-assessment, lifestyle factors and screening for hypertension, diabetes and excess weight in periodic examinations.
– Strengthen worker education with accessible preventive-health and safety-culture workshops informed by the course's five modules.
Source links: www.who.int
Original publication date (Solar Hijri): 1405/06/29
Author: Dibagostaran Sanat