Vietnamese healthcare achieves impressive results in 2020

2020 was an eventful year to the Vietnamese medical staff. The national healthcare system was able to obtain fruitful achievements despite the unexpected unwanted spread of Covid-19 pandemic. In fact, Vietnam became famous internationally thanks to its unbelievable success in the combat against Covid-19.

The second branch of HCMC Oncology Hospital is modernly built to serve patients. (Photo: SGGP)
The second branch of HCMC Oncology Hospital is modernly built to serve patients. (Photo: SGGP)

Strictly observing the motto ‘Fighting the Pandemic Fiercely like Fighting the Hardest Enemy’ of the Central Party and the Government, all the medical human resources nationwide cooperated closely with the military and police to help all citizens stay away from the disease and try their best to cure Covid-19 patients.

Along the way, the Vietnamese healthcare reached the milestones of successfully culturing and isolating SARS-CoV-2 in the laboratory environment, developing quick test kits to detect infected people, researching the virulence of this dangerous virus, and creating corresponding vaccines.

December 17, 2020 became one historic moment when the first vaccine against Covid-19 (Nano Covax) was injected into volunteers in the Vietnam Military Medical University.

Other remarkable achievements of the medical staff in Vietnam besides effective treatments for Covid-19 patients are the implementations of practical solutions to ease the crowds in head hospitals, improve medical services, save lives via advanced technologies.

The most prominent are the successful operations to separate the twin Song Nhi – Truc Nhi, who were conjoined at the pelvis, and to transplant organs for 23 cases in 13 days.

In the time of the pandemic, the healthcare in Vietnam wholeheartedly perform the digital transformation process in diagnosis and disease treatment, especially the introduction of Telehealth – a system for distance medical diagnosis among 1,500 hospitals throughout the country. That has somewhat ease the burden of grassroots hospital and medical units.

The use of Picture Achieving and Communication System (PACS) and digital medical records have positively contributed to environment protection.

Furthermore, the Ministry of Health is one of the only 2 ministries to offer all level-4 public services online on its own portal, linking to the national one. Visiting this portal, users can see transparent information about nearly 62,500 medicines, 28,000 medical equipment, 93,200 projects related to healthcare, over 1,400 medical institutes (with detailed service and treatment prices).

Finally, the local medical network V20 went into operation to shared professional expertise among 10,600 wards of Vietnam. Adding to that is the completion of the database for 98 million medical records of Vietnamese citizens by the Health Ministry and Vietnam Social Security to prepare for paperless disease diagnosis and treatment in the future.

Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc highly appreciated all achievements so far of the Vietnamese medical staff at all levels, especially their silent efforts and strong determination to fight against the pandemic.

He then commented that thanks to our success in this harsh combat, the status of Vietnam is improved by 30 percent, including the overall development rating. He concluded with the hope for a further growth of the medical field in the near future so that the general health of all citizens is fully taken care of.

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