Health Minister Dao Hong Lan, Deputy Health Minister Nguyen Thi Lien Huong and WHO Representative in Vietnam Angela Pratt co-chaired the Health Partnership Group meeting in Hanoi on April 21.
Hanoi (VNA) – Health Minister Dao Hong Lan, DeputyHealth Minister Nguyen Thi Lien Huong and WHO Representative in Vietnam Angela Pratt co-chaired the HealthPartnership Group meeting in Hanoi on April 21.
Speaking atthe opening ceremony, Minister Lan stressed the significance of the meeting in the context that countries around the world, including Vietnam, are overcoming consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic and continue to develop.
The Vietnamese health sector has received a lot of support andcooperation from international partners and friends, contributing to thesuccess of disease control and and protecting the health of the Vietnamesepeople, she said, expressing her hope that such partnerships and cooperation will furtherdeepen and become even more sustainable.
She said last year, the sector met 13 out of 16 targets assigned by theVietnamese National Assembly and Government.
Amid common difficulties faced by the world after the pandemic, shesaid the Vietnamese health sector will strive towards the common goal ofdeveloping a fair, quality, efficient and sustainable health care system andeffectively controlling COVID-19 and other emerging diseases.
The sector will focus on fine-tuning mechanisms and laws, improving hospitalmanagement capacity and the quality of health services, and gradually streamliningthe health care system to be more effective and efficient. It will also proposepolicies to improve the welfare of medical staff, she said.
According to Lan, priority will be given to administrative reform incombination with the application of information technology and digitaltransformation.
Based on the overall goal, the sector will specify priorities forspecific areas to implement in 2023 towards fulfilling its five-year plan.
ಌ Delegates at the event debated issues related to the health sector,including the prevention and control of COVID-19 and other diseases, agingpopulation, grassroots health care and vaccination./.
More than 236 trillion VND (10 billion USD) had been mobilised to directly serve the COVID-19 prevention and control as of December 31, 2022, according to a report by a National Assembly (NA) supervisory delegation.
Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh on April 11 suggested the Ministry of Health (MoH) assign capable medical facilities to build medicine centres in six socio-economic regions nationwide, which will serve others when needed.
The National Institute of Hygiene and Epidemiology (NIHE) under the Ministry of Health has urged localities to step up polio vaccinations to prevent viral diseases in children born in 2021 and 2022.
The Ministry of Health on April 12 sent an urgent dispatch on strengthening the prevention and control of COVID-19 to the People's Committees of all 63 provinces and centrally-run cities.
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.
The 56-year-old patient from Quang Tri province was discharged in stable condition as he no longer experienced shortness of breath and was able to walk, move around, and eat normally.
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.
Illustrative image (Photo: VNA) 
