We had a friendly chat with one of our friends who is active in health industry. He is renowned among the industry actors for his scientific knowledge.
Mr. Mohammad Tahmasebi - Senior Expert on Medical Equipment
Please introduce yourself and your work background?
I am the supervising expert in charge of the medical equipment of Tehran Medical University with 29 years of experience, and a member of the board of directors and the secretary of the infection control association.
My CV includes other activities such as:
1-The official expert in the field of engineering and medical equipment
2-The real expert has a standard license from the National Iranian Standards
3-Organization in the field of monitoring the implementation of standards in the field of medical engineering
4-Executive Secretary and member of the Scientific Committee of the International Congress on Medical Equipment Standards
5-Executive Secretary and Member of the Scientific Committee of the International Congress on Medical Devices and Material Controls on Infection and Sterilization
6- Executive Secretary and Member of the Scientific Committee of the International Congress on Hospital Building and Resource Management
7-Member of the International Committee for the Control of Infection
8-Member of the Scientific Committee - Infection Control and Sterilization
9-Specialization of the University-Applied Scientific Society
10- Member of the relevant committee
11-Membership in final committees for the development of national standards for medical equipment in the National Standard Organization
12-The equipping of hospitals and specialized departments in reconstruction projects for the modernization and equipping of 15 hospitals of Tehran University of Medical Sciences since 1996
13-Teaching at universities in Tehran, Shahid Beheshti, Isfahan, Qom, Shahrekord, Islamic Azad University, Social Security Organization and Applied Scientific University
14-Receiving various letters of appreciation from the officials from the Ministry of Education
How do you find activity in the health industry?
Health refers to providing complete physical, psychological, and social welfare to people. In the hadith the two main factors of life are two divine bounties: health and security. According to WHO, health is not merely the absence of disease or disability but having no psychosocial, social, economic, and physical problems. Also in our religious tradition it is mentioned that if you save one life it is as if you have saved the entire humanity. Therefore it is a great honor to be active in the health industry because we are working in a section which contributes to the life and welfare of people.
What is the secret of your success?
God’s favor, my parents’ prayers, my constant prayers offered to God for success in my service to people and patients, and learning from the advances in medicine and finding ways to encourage and support them.
Why medical equipment has been the most beneficial business in the world?
Most of the exported products of the health industry are high tech, knowledge based, and highly profitable and due to the high demand for them in the society always have a great market. Medical equipment industry has been increasingly in the scopes of different nations because ood advances in the medical science and its relevance to people’s health. 30 to 50 percent of the hospital costs are for drugs and medical equipment. Therefore medical equipments comprise a great portion of the hospital economy. 10 countries, America, Japan, Germany, France, Britain, Italy, China, Canada, Russia, and Spain, circulate 300 billion dollars in the health industry, the largest share of the market. When you consider the added value, you see how beneficial this industry is.
Which works have you written?
1. Compilation of the manual for the purchase of medical equipment - dental and laboratory equipment with ten reprints and annual reprints
2. Compilation of the Handbook of Scientific and Applied Materials and Medical Equipment for Infection and Sterilization Control with the Co-Deputy Director of the Food and Drug Administration and the Tehran University of Medical Sciences logo and the Food and Drug Administration
3. Receiving the title of the article selected at the seminars organized by the Ministry of Health
4. Print several scientific articles in valid medical books and magazines
5. Executing the research project for the compilation of pm instructions for 30 medical devices by the Ministry of Health and Medical Education.
What advice do you have for advancement in health?
Enabling and ranking the experts on medical equipment in the nation is the most important strategy for the advancement of the nation in the health industry. The Association of the Medical Experts can put forth educational courses and strategies for ranking the experts and with their support we will definitely see a great leap forward. The cost share of R&D in the field of medical equipment and new technologies development is pretty considerable, 30 to 40 percent of our nation’s medical equipment is produced domestically, which adds up to 400 million dollars, and on the other hand, 60 to 70 percent is imported. In Iran there are many companies producing medical equipment, and in recent years many knowledge based companies have started their activities. Last year we imported 879 million dollars worth of medical equipment which shows a large drop in comparison with the year before, which was 1.2 billion dollars. Still, the nation is in dire need of importing medical equipment.
In ther field of medical equipment, Iran has been adamant in recent years to begin having a presence in the foreign markets. Right now the main priority of the government and the Ministry of Health is to support exportation in drugs and medical equipment. Right now about 400 units are active in this area and the money flow is about 2 billion dollars. Among these 400 units, there are 80 units dedicated to medical equipment with a worth of 30 million dollars which is negligible in comparison with the existing potentials. We need to activate these potentials by utilizing the talents of our nation’s medical equipment experts.
The founding of Medical Engineering Organization is a very welcome development because it can play a major role in organizing the experts and improving the health industry. Thankfully the potential for producing all kinds of knowledge based medical equipments exists in Iran and therefore we can remove the barriers to production and adapt strategies to encourage exports and increase the abilities of our experts and consequently help the advancement of our country.
