Vietnam Health Ministry Asks Hospitals to Take Care of Medical Waste

Vietnamese Minister of Health Nguyen Thi Kim Tien has asked hospitals and provincial authorities across the country to increase management over the discharge of medical waste, state media reported on July 7. The Health Ministry also asked the local authorities to allocate sufficient resources to build medical waste treatment plants for hospitals in the list of pollution areas and push forward several World Bank-funded waste treatment plants. In addition, the provincial authorities will have to increase inspections on medical waste management, strictly punish violators, put directors of hospitals into responsible positions for the issue, and report back to the ministry periodically. Moreover, heads of the hospitals and medical service centers have to increase management of medical waste and avoid letting the waste affect environment. The Medical Service Administration will be in charge of setting standards for medical waste treatment in hospitals while Department of Medical Environment Management will cooperate to assess the implementation later. (Thanh Nien – Young People July 7 p5, Hanoi Moi – New Hanoi July 7 p1, Phap Luat Viet Nam – Vietnam Law July 7 p2, Lao Dong – Labor July 7 p3, Cong An Nhan Dan – People’s Police July 7 p1)