TUMS Faculty Member Receives Dr. Lee Jong-Wook Memorial Prize for Public Health 2016

Dr. Lee Jong-Wook Memorial Prize for Public Health is awarded to a person(s) or organization(s), who has made an outstanding contribution to the field of public health. The prize aims at rewarding work that has extended far beyond the call of normal duties. In its 138th session, the Executive Board of World Health Organization (WHO) awarded this prize for public health 2016 to Dr. Alireza Mesdaghinia, faculty member of Tehran University of Medical Sciences (TUMS), School of Public Health. The prize consists of a plaque and an amount of $100,000, and it will be presented to Dr. Mesdaghinia by the President of the 69th World Health Assembly on May 27, 2016, in the Assembly Hall of the Palais des Nations, Geneva, Switzerland.

Born in 1946, Professor Mesdaghinia has dedicated a lifetime of commitment to and leadership in strengthening the capacity of public health facilities and education systems in Iran. He has made outstanding contributions to research and control of communicable diseases in his own country, as well as the surrounding region. He has enhanced regional, national and international collaborations between TUMS School of Public Health and many organizations, including WHO, that specialize in education and research in public health.

Professor Mesdaghinia is a renowned professor in the field of Environmental Public Health, both nationally and internationally. For 28 years, he served as the Dean of TUMS School of Public Health, a national centre of excellence for public health training. He has taught and supervised numerous postgraduate students, conducted extensive research as the Head of TUMS Institute for Environmental Research, which he established 15 years ago, and published over 200 papers in peer-reviewed health journals. His role in the expansion and enhancement of education, research and management of public health is phenomenal. Among many significant achievements, he co-founded many peer-reviewed public health journals, established the international diploma course on malaria program planning and management, and promoted national laboratories for leishmania, malaria and virology. Professor Mesdaghinia was also appointed as Deputy for Public Health at Iran’s Ministry of Health and Medical Education from 2009 to 2012. Among many awards commendations, Professor Mesdaghinia received the Allameh Tabatabai Prize awarded by the Iranian President in 2014. He is also a permanent member of the National Academy of Medical Sciences in Iran.