To implement physical distancing plans in the national programs of combating COVID-19 by environmental and occupational health inspectors of health centers in each city, and due to the vast increase in the work load and insufficient number of health inspectors, inspector's assistants' employment to assist health inspectors was suggested to the general governor of Hamedan province.

After being approved by the governor, the plan was communicated to the office of the governors of each city, and they introduced trusted volunteers to the health centers of the cities. After introducing the selected individuals and training them by environmental and occupational health experts, they started to work as assistant inspectors.

Considering the relevant legal considerations for health inspectors, none of the selected volunteers directly interfered in providing verbal or written warnings to the shopkeepers, and they could only report their non-adherence to the health protocols to the health inspectors based on a checklist. Immediately after submitting the report, the health inspectors had to go to those stores, and train the essential health protocols to them.

The initiative aims to monitor health protocols' adherence by people, and to support high-risk classes against the spread of COVID-19 disease in Hamadan province.

This was achived by:

1. Knowing the capabilities of the individuals informed with the missions of the health domain.
2. Introducing trusted volunteers -30 to 50 people- by the governors of each city to the University health deputy.
3. Selecting individuals tailored to the field and training them to assist health inspectors in inspecting eligible stores in various businesses.
4. Providing the necessary training by the city health centers.
5. Determining the locations hey should work in alongside health inspectors in each city.
6. Accompanying the selected volunteers by the health inspectors during working hours.

These trusted volunteers were optimally used as assistants of the health inspectors in monitoring the physical distancing, and it led to a good success (about 50%) in some cities of the province such as Famenin, which did not have enough environmental and occupational health inspectors.

In terms of post-pandemic prospects, the measures taken in this plan will be effective in strengthening the culture of personal hygiene and food hygiene in the long run.

Due to the epidemic of COVID-19 which  is accompanied by personal hygiene such as face covering, wearing gloves and constant hand washing as well as physical distancing (at least one and a half to two meters) , it was necessary to carry out a physical distancing project in the society. This showed that environmental and occupational health inspectors used all their capacity to make people adhere this distance. However, due to insufficient number of trained experts, this plan – employing expert assistants – was designed and implemented.

Thus, the trusted volunteer individuals, being approved by the governor office of each city, were used in the second stage of physical distancing project along with the health experts.