Syndromic surveillance is now being used in many countries, specifically in Europe and in Western Pacific countries using routinely available data on health and non health-related issues for the early detection of outbreaks and clusters of health events with the aim of rapidly responding to them. It is based on timely collection, collation, analysis, interpretation and dissemination of data from different sources to enhance detection of outbreaks, thus reducing the associated mortality, morbidity and economic impact of such outbreaks.

Islamic Republic of Iran currently has a strong clinical notification system which needs to be further improved; it is the first country in the Eastern Mediterranean Region which is exploring the implementation of syndromic sentinel surveillance. To achieve this, strong inter- and intrasocial collaboration is needed, as is high-level political commitment.

The Ministry of Health and Medical Education intends to implement syndromic surveillance in a stepwise manner with a clear plan of action; ensure that IT capacity is strengthened through development of software for easy retrieval, analyse and generate reports from collected data; and pilot the syndromic surveillance system in two provinces in the country to ensure that this can be integrated with the routine national surveillance system.