Summons and Threats Against Protesting Nurses in Iran Have Intensified

In recent months, nurses across the country have faced severe pressure from the Ministry of Health due to protests over their working conditions, including the incomplete implementation of the pricing law and mandatory overtime. According to ILNA news agency, contract nurses face non-renewal of contracts and dismissal if they participate in protests. Official nurses are also not exempt from these pressures and have been summoned and punished in some cases by the disciplinary committee. Protests and gatherings by nurses have intensified since the last months of the previous year, with various groups of nurses organizing protests in front of medical universities in different provinces. Following this trend, Mohammad Sharifi-Moqaddam, Secretary-General of the Nurses' House, reported on Sunday, July 8, that the summons and threats against protesting nurses across the country have intensified. He noted that around 60 nurses in Kerman and several others in Kermanshah were summoned due to their participation in protests, considering these actions as the Ministry of Health's policy to counter nurses' demands. Sharifi-Moqaddam pointed out the forced overtime with low wages and the non-payment of bonuses to Kermanshah nurses for 12 months as examples of the pressures faced by nurses. He also reported the exile of a nurse in Kermanshah and harassment of protesting nurses by hospital and department managers. He views these actions as the Ministry of Health's policy to 'cover up the issue' instead of solving nurses' problems, stating that 'they intend to dissuade nurses from demanding and pursuing their legal rights.' On May 13, the Secretary-General of the Nurses' House told the 'Etemad' newspaper that in just one month, three nurses in Iran had died 'due to excessive work,' 'in their sleep.' Recently, reports have also emerged about an increase in suicides among nurses in Iran, attributed to 'increasing pressure' at work. The exact number of nurse suicides in Iran is not officially known, but the rising count is alarming. Mr. Sharifi-Moqaddam announced in November 2023 that the annual migration rate of nurses has reached 3,000, leading to patient deaths due to a shortage of nurses in hospitals. This official from the Nurses' House also mentioned that he was 'summoned' for announcing this statistic and was asked to provide evidence for this claim, to which he replied, 'Shouldn't evidence be provided for the daylight?' Some health officials have repeatedly described the migration of nurses and doctors as a serious issue and have even warned about the emptying of hospitals and universities. However, Brigadier General Ramadan Sharif, spokesman for the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, recently described this information as a 'media onslaught against the Islamic regime.'