Vietnamese health authorities will set up five groups to inspect the operations of private health centers nationwide, Minister of Health Nguyen Thi Kim Tien said at an urgent meeting in Hanoi Oct 27. The move came after high public concerns and anger from recent scandals in the health sector. The latest case involves a doctor that threw the body of his dead patient into a local river. An official from the Ministry of Health earlier made an apology for the pitiful death of the woman and denounced the doctor’s unacceptable act, which partly reflects falling ethics among health workers. Ms. Tien also proposed measures to fix legal loopholes in the management of private healthcare services. (Lao Dong – Labor Oct 29, bbc.co.uk Oct 28)
