Performance assessment of a vector- borne diseases system in response to the Earthquake natural disaster in Western Iran.

Background: The Iranian plateau is subject to most type s disastrous earthquake activity. A magnitude 7.3 earthquake hit Kermanshah province, western part of Iran along the border with Iraq on Sunday November 12, 2017 at 21:48 pm local time. The management of vector-borne diseases must be addressed in the prism of a One Health strategy that includes entomological surveillance as an integral part of the policy.Objectives: This investigation was carried out to assess the performance a surveillance systems to monitor vector borne diseses.Materials and Methods: Following the earthquake, a surveillance system have been organized in collaboration with the Department of Medical Entomology and Vector Control, School of public health, Tehran University of Medical sciences and Ministry of Health, CDC of Iran. The Kermanshah provincial health center performed the vector- borne diseases control program as an integral part of surveillance system in at risk Gilan-e Gharb, Qasr-e Shirin, Sarpol-e Zahab, and Salas- Babajani counties, Kermanshah Province, western Iran. Qualitative data were collected through visit and interviews with the surveillance system participants, and quantitative data were obtained from the provincial surveillance system. Rodent control, space spraying, indoor residual spraying, distributed of long lasting impregnated bed nets and DEET were considered as the strategies of vector control.Results: The vector- borne diseases control program as an integral part of surveillance system was useful, simple, representative, timely, and flexible.Conclusion: It is the first formal research which defines the performance assessment of a vector- borne diseases system in response to the Earthquake natural disaster in Iran. The scientific data generated from this studies in Iran will contribute to the development of strategies to achieve vector and diseses control during the disasters situation. However it is importance that vector research in Iran is updated to inform decision-making for vector control strategies in support of diseases control exposed to disaster situation in the future.