TEHRAN — Shafi Ja’fari is a young dentist who visited and examined people around Enqelab square, central Tehran, for three hours on Thursday, ISNA news agency reported.

What Ja’fari, a Tehran University graduate, did, was a symbolic act of criticism centered on the widespread ignorance of prevention.

He explained that “Iranian people often overlook the importance of prevention and regular checkup, so I took my unit to the street to encourage the public to take dental problems serious.”

“I usually visit 40 to 50 patients per day and I know from experience that neither the patients nor the doctors take prevention into account,” he lamented.

Ignoring dental problems at the early stages would intensify the disease as well as the expenses, Ja’fari warned, adding, periodical checkups can both prevent serious problems and cut the expenses.

“I chose Enqelab square so I could visit people of different classes and I got a great feedback,” he added.

He expressed hope that insurance companies and healthcare providers strive to reconcile people with the concept of prevention particularly in the field of dental care.

MQ/MG