06/11/2020 Iran (International Christian Concern) – According to a recent announcement by the Iranian Ministry of Health, all students of medicine, dentistry, and pharmacology are now required to pass a course in Islamic medicine. Such a decision would further ostracize Christians from “white collar” job opportunities while creating some potential difficulties for Christian patients.

The ministry’s decision comes in spite of widespread public concerns regarding potential harm of traditional Islamic medicine to people’s health, especially following the coronavirus. Iran has experienced particularly high infection rates because of its dismissal of modern medical practices and failure to conduct communal worship in accordance with international health standards.

The implementation of this order creates further distance for Christians who may wish to study medicine. Furthermore, imprisoned Christians regularly experience medical abuse and an increased emphasis of Islamic medicine could deepen this problem.

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