Major Hospitals in HCMC Succeed in Transferring Techniques

Major hospitals in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam’s biggest economic hub, have successfully transferred techniques to provincial hospitals after implementing a program two years a program on the subject. Six major hospitals in HCM City including The Hospital for Traumatology and Orthopaedics, Gia Dinh People’s Hospital, Tu Du Obstetrics Hospital, Children’s Hospital No.1, Children’s Hospital No.2, and Oncology Hospital provided training and taught about 250 techniques to 14 hospitals in southern provinces. The first phase of the program, which aimed at improving the diagnostic and treatment of provincial-level hospitals, began in 2013, said Director of the municipal Department of Health Nguyen Tan Binh, adding that the provincial hospitals can now perform most of the techniques. The number of people getting treatment at local hospitals has increased significantly, easing the overload at HCM City hospitals, he said. While Vietnam has average of seven doctors per 10,000 population, that number of Mekong Delta is only 4.6. The shortage of medical officials and doctors in the region hampered their learning of new techniques. Minister of Health Nguyen Thi Kim Tien said the ministry would expand the program to another 13 cities and provinces, adding that teaching these techniques plays a key role in improving the diagnosis and treatment quality at provincial hospitals and eventually easing overcrowded situation at major hospitals. Up to 14 major hospitals, of which eight in Hanoi and Hue, have transferred to 48 hospitals nationwide medical techniques in five fields including cardiology, traumatology, oncology, obstetrics, and pediatrics. The HCMC Department of Health also announced that the second phase of the project in the 2016-2020 period will have additional hospitals such as People's Hospital 115, Binh Dan Hospital, Eye Hospital, and the Hospital of Haematology and Blood Transfusion in HCM City. (Vietnamlus.vn July 12)