Minister of Health Nguyen Thi Kim Tien said it is a must to improve the quality and operational efficiency of grassroots-level health care centres in order to attract more patients.
Hanoi (VNA) – Minister of Health NguyenThi Kim Tien said it is a must to improve the quality and operationalefficiency of grassroots-level health care centres in order to attract morepatients.
Speaking at a conference in Hanoi on December 20 to implement the pilot modelof enhancing capacity for medical centres at wards and communes, Tien said Vietnamhas a network of 11,400 infirmaries which spread nearly 99 percent of wards andcommunes nationwide.
Thanks to the widespread coverage of health services, Vietnam has become one ofthe ten countries completing the millennium development goal relating maternaland child health, and successfully controlled and eliminated many dangerousdiseases, the minister said.
However, she pointed to a range of limitations remaining at grassroots health careservices such as low quality, limited capacity of health workers and theshortage of medicines, among others.
The health ministry has rolled out an action plan to implement the project onbuilding and developing grassroots health care network in the new period during2018-2020, Tien said.
To carry the project, efforts will be focused on professional skills, humanresources, material facilities, equipment, financial supply, health care and ITapplication, she noted.
Dr. Kidong Park, Chief Representative of the World Health Organisation inVietnam, stressed the significance of the renovation of the health system inVietnam, explaining that it helps the country achieve the target of universalhealth care coverage.
The Vietnamese health sector should heed preventing non-contagious diseases andtake people as the centre in health care services, the official suggested.
The model will be piloted in medical clinics of 26 wards and communes of eightcities and provinces, including Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City, Lao Cai, Yen Bai, Ha Tinh,Long An, Khanh Hoa and Lam Dong.-VNA
The southernmost province of Ca Mau has completed the national set of criteria on communal health care for 2011-2020, five years earlier than the Health Ministry’s general plan.
The Ho Chi Minh City Department of Health plans to create the best conditions for the private sector to open more family medical clinics to provide comprehensive primary healthcare services.
The Ministry of Health will soon spell out what medicines and medical techniques should be used by ward- and commune-level health centres around the country to make the family medicine model more efficient and reassure patients.
More resources should be channeled into grassroots and preventive medicine, which is considered as the root of the health sector, focusing on extremely disadvantaged areas, said Deputy Prime Minister Vu Duc Dam.
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.
An overview of the conference (Source: VNA) 
