The impact of COVID-19: consequences of a 3-Year struggle in Iran

The disability-adjusted life year (DALY) approach gives policymakers a clear understanding of the scale of the health issue. This study aimed to estimate DALYs attributed to coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) for the population of Bushehr province and, by extension, the Iranian population during the first three years of the pandemic.

This retrospective study was performed to estimate the DALY of COVID-19 in Iran and Bushehr province from 2021 to 2023. The concentration index and Gini coefficient were used to measure Covid-related deaths among the counties of Bushehr provinces according to the availability of hospital beds. A one-way sensitivity analysis was also performed to account for data uncertainties.

The study revealed that during the study period, there were 2,554 deaths due to COVID-19 in Bushehr province. The calculated DALYs for Bushehr province and Iran were 36,004 and 2,073,036, respectively. Among these DALYs, 99.25% were YLLs, while the remaining 0.75% were YLDs. In Bushehr province, the concentration index and calculated Gini coefficient for 2022 were 0.25 and 0.49, respectively.

The results revealed that the burden of COVID-19 in Iran was significantly high in 2021 and 2022. Implementing specific policies and strategies at the national level is imperative. These policies should prioritize the allocation of vital resources, improve disease surveillance systems, and optimize service delivery. Concurrently, at the provincial level, concerted efforts must be made to enhance inter-sectoral collaboration, promote health literacy, and effectively monitor processes.