A resident of Binh Tan district learns about preventive methods against dengue fever and Zika infections (Photo: VNA)
HCM City (VNA) – Nineteen Zika virus cases have been reported in HCM City sincethe beginning of the year, according to the city Preventive Health Centre.
Since April 2016, when the first case was reported, 210 people in the city havetested positive for the Zika virus, which is transmitted viainfected Aedes mosquitoes.
Of the 210 patients, 51 were pregnant, said Dr Le Hong Nga, head of thecentre’s contagious diseases’ control division, at a monthly meeting with thecity’s Department of Health and district-level health centres on May 2.
Of thepregnant patients, 19 gave birth to babies with no visible birth defects,including an abnormally small head, which sometimes occurs with Zikainfections.
Nga has instructed all district-level health centres to strengthen surveillanceand reduce the density of mosquitoes in high-risk areas.
Preventive methods can also help control denguefever, which has seen a downward trend in the first four months, with 6,501 newincidences, a decrease of nearly 20 percent compared to the same period lastyear.
“However, several districts such as 5, 10, Go Vap,Tan Binh and Can Gio have wards with an increase in dengue cases,” she said.
Inspection of the city’s 13,636 high-risk sitesshould be strengthened, she said.
Last month, municipal health officials checkedonly 50 percent of these areas and fined violators at eight of them.
Dr Dang Quang Tai of the department’s HealthCommunication and Education Centre said that district-level health centreofficials had provided information about preventive methods, including denguefever and Zika viruses, to all households in high-risk areas.
InDistrict 12, for instance, health officials travelling on motorbikes havecommunicated information with loudspeakers on alleys and roads.
However, communication staff at severaldistrict-level health centres lack necessary skills and have been ineffectivein educating local residents. –VNA
The epidemics abroad are likely to break out in Vietnam unless preventive measures are taken, head of the Health Ministry’s Preventive Medicine Department Tran Dac Phu said at a seminar in Hanoi.
Communicable diseases from around the world could enter Vietnam and spread easily if the country does not improve prevention and control, said Tran Dac Phu, Director of the Ministry of Health’s Preventive Medicine Department.
Although the number of Zika virus infection cases have dropped, the disease could break out on a large scale if no preventive plan was implemented since the beginning of the year, said a health expert.
Vietnam now boasts a nationwide healthcare network with 1,665 hospitals, 384 of which are non-public, supported by local commune- and ward-level stations. At the end of 2024, hospital bed capacity reached 34 per 10,000 people, slightly above the global average.
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Associate Professor Dr. Nguyen Vu Trung, Director of the Pasteur Institute, said that under the MoU, the two sides committed to promoting diverse and practical collaborative activities, including joint conferences and workshops, exchanges of scholars, researchers and students, sharing academic materials, and the development of specific programmes and projects in scientific research, training, and epidemic prevention.
TytoCare, a leading Israeli telemedicine company based in Netanya, is willing to work with Vietnamese regulators, insurers, and healthcare providers to develop a sustainable digital health ecosystem.
The partnership is under the framework of a Memorandum of Understanding on the development and implementation of the National Action Plan on Breast Cancer and Cervical Cancer Prevention and Control, signed in Hanoi on July 22.
An estimated 7 million Vietnamese are currently living with diabetes, but about 50% remain undiagnosed, a dangerous gap that is fuelling serious, preventable complications and increasing the burden on the healthcare system.
In 2024, Vietnam achieved 99% coverage for the first dose of the diphtheria, tetanus and pertussis vaccine, up from 80% in 2023. Immunisation coverage in the country has not only rebounded to the high levels seen before the COVID-19 pandemic but has now surpassed the rates recorded in 2019.
Health authorities in HCM City have issued an urgent alert after six people died from dengue fever, amid a spike in infections driven by the onset of the rainy season.
During the peak months of July and August 2025, the National Institute of Haematology and Blood Transfusion (NIHBT) needs at least 90,000 units of blood to supply 180 hospitals in the northern region. However, despite continuous efforts, the reserve blood is still short of 30,000 units.
The Hanoi ceremony highlighted efforts to ensure all citizens, especially women and youth, can access accurate information and healthcare services to make informed reproductive choices.
After such a long time, the law has revealed many limitations, prompting the Ministry of Health (MoH) to gather opinions to amend the law to give more chances to thousands of patients every year.
Currently, cardiovascular specialists from the 108 Military Central Hospital are working alongside a team of Prof.Dr. Jan D. Schmitto, Deputy Director of MHH’s Department of Cardiac, Thoracic, Transplantation and Vascular Surgery on clinical trials for MCS devices, implanted in heart failure patients either as a bridge to transplantation or as permanent treatment.
The centre not only serves residents living on the island, but also receives tens of thousands of visitors every year, according to Assoc Prof Dr Tang Chi Thuong, Director of the HCM CIty Department of Health.
Not only does Vietnam attract international tourists with its landscapes, culture, and cuisine, but it is also gradually becoming a reliable destination for medical treatment, offering high-quality services at reasonable costs.
Over the past six months, 150 communal health stations in provinces including Ha Giang, Bac Kan, Lang Son, Lao Cai, Lai Chau, Yen Bai, Tay Ninh, Hau Giang, Ben Tre and Ca Mau have been equipped with information technology systems. In addition, 117 key provincial healthcare workers have received training, with thousands more expected to follow.
During the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, the Ministry of Health swiftly launched a telemedicine programme, connecting more than 1,000 medical establishments nationwide. The model, which remains in operation, has benefited tens of thousands of patients, including foreign nationals.
After more than three weeks of intensive treatment, the patient's pneumonia improved, breathing stabilised, sedation was reduced, and the breathing tube was removed. He is now conscious, able to eat orally, and in recovery.
A resident of Binh Tan district learns about preventive methods against dengue fever and Zika infections (Photo: VNA) 
