Vietnam's healthcare sector has made great strides, gradually approaching the development of world medicine. Experts say that the professional skills of Vietnamese doctors are not inferior to any developed healthcare sector. As a locality with all the conditions and opportunities to bring Vietnam's healthcare sector to the regional and world level, Ho Chi Minh City is taking steps to affirm its position and reputation.
According to statistics from the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Health, the city has 144 public and private hospitals, 318 medical stations, 196 general clinics, and nearly 6,000 private specialist clinics. Illustrative photo: VNA
Lesson 1: Potential destination With significant advances in public health care, especially the effective application of advanced techniques at reasonable costs, Vietnam is becoming a destination for many foreigners in need of medical examination and treatment. More and more foreigners are coming to Vietnam for health care, entrusting their lives and beliefs. Attracting foreigners to Vietnam for medical treatment Paralyzed in both legs and confined to a wheelchair for 8 years, CD. Washington (born in 1978, Canadian nationality) went to many hospitals in Canada for treatment. Although he was prescribed surgery, he did not agree. Learning about non-surgical methods using traditional oriental medicine, he went to Military Hospital 175 (Ho Chi Minh City) for treatment. At Military Hospital 175, the patient was diagnosed with paralysis of both lower limbs due to sequelae of spinal trauma, multiple injuries due to an 8-year-old traffic accident, and high blood pressure. Doctors of the Department of Traditional Medicine, Military Hospital 175 decided to treat with acupuncture, acupressure, electro-muscle stimulation therapy, whole-body magnetic stimulation to restore nerves, exercise training... After 2 months of treatment and training efforts, the patient took his first steps with an assistive device and was able to walk normally after 3 months. Previously, in May, information about the safe and healthy birth of baby Hiba from the US became a joy for the medical staff of My Duc Hospital in Ho Chi Minh City. Hiba is one of the little angels born thanks to the in vitro fertilization method performed directly by Associate Professor, Doctor, Doctor Vuong Thi Ngoc Lan, lecturer at the University of Medicine and Pharmacy in Ho Chi Minh City, a doctor at My Duc Hospital. Before coming to Vietnam, Hiba's parents spent 10 years looking for a child with 6 in vitro fertilization (IVF) attempts but all failed. After learning about the information, the infertile couple came to Vietnam for help. In June 2022, they arrived in Vietnam and the second embryo transfer was successful. Returning to the US, 9 months later, the couple burst into happiness when welcoming little angel Hiba to their family. Dr. Ho Manh Tuong, General Secretary of the Ho Chi Minh City Association of Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility, assessed that in the past, Vietnam was only known to foreigners and overseas Vietnamese as a place to perform cheap and effective medical techniques in the fields of traditional medicine, dentistry and aesthetics. However, in recent years, the field of infertility treatment has emerged with outstanding achievements. According to Dr. Tuong, in the US, in vitro fertilization (IVF) services are quite expensive, about 20,000 USD/treatment, in Vietnam it is only about 3,500 USD. Even in Southeast Asia, the price of IVF services is about 3 times higher than in Vietnam. In terms of effectiveness, the current success rate of IVF in Vietnam ranges from 40 - 45%, while in some other countries it only reaches 30 - 40%. Low costs and high level of doctor skills are some of the reasons why more and more foreigners and overseas Vietnamese come to Vietnam for medical examination and treatment. In Ho Chi Minh City, many medical facilities have provided medical examination and treatment for foreigners. While in the past, foreign visitors to Vietnam for medical treatment were mainly from Laos and Cambodia, in recent years, the number of overseas Vietnamese and people from the US, Canada, Australia, Japan, etc. has increased. Some units in the City such as FV Hospital receive about 20,000 patients/year, University of Medicine and Pharmacy Hospital 18,000 patients/year, Cho Ray Hospital 1,200 patients/year... foreign patients. Medical tourism has great potential.
Ho Chi Minh City announced the launch of medical tourism products in 2023. Photo: My Phuong/VNA
According to statistics from the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Health, the city has 144 public and private hospitals, 318 medical stations, 196 general clinics, and nearly 6,000 private specialist clinics. Along with the quantity, the quality of medical services is increasingly improved, and the technical expertise of the medical staff is constantly improving. These are ideal conditions for the formation and development of a medical tourism network. According to statistics from the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Tourism, the number of tourists coming to Vietnam for medical treatment has increased steadily over the years with a revenue of about 2 billion USD/year. On average, each year there are about 300,000 foreign visitors coming to Vietnam for medical treatment, of which 40% are concentrated in Ho Chi Minh City. As one of the first international standard hospitals in Ho Chi Minh City, from the beginning, FV Hospital has set out a strategy to bring international quality services to serve patients at home and abroad. The Department of Health assessed that the most noteworthy point is that FV has invested resources in a way to keep Vietnamese people from having to go abroad for medical treatment, and to attract foreign patients to the hospital for medical treatment. In particular, FV Hospital has invested and made efforts to repeatedly achieve hospital quality recognition according to JCI international standards, so many international health insurance companies and international insurance support companies accept and sign contracts for medical examination and treatment for customers when they come here. Currently, the number of medical examinations and treatments for foreigners accounts for about 25% of the total number of medical examinations and treatments at FV Hospital, including Koreans, Japanese, French, Americans, Canadians, Cambodians, etc. One of the strengths to attract medical tourism that the Ho Chi Minh City Health Department is promoting is traditional medicine. The Institute of Traditional Medicine and the Traditional Medicine Hospital are the two largest specialized units in the Southern region in this field. Doctor Do Tan Khoa, Director of the Ho Chi Minh City Traditional Medicine Hospital, said that this is a strength in tourism combined with medicine. In traditional medicine, massage and acupressure are their own strengths. If acupressure is applied to the body using traditional medicine techniques, it will help patients have a self-recovery process, bringing a feeling of comfort and relaxation, reducing pain and fatigue after the trip. “We have a very rich source of medicinal herbs, close to the people, safe, we have stories about traditional medicine culture, stories about doctors, remedies, medicinal places of Vietnam... If exploited effectively, it is difficult for any place to have when developing healthcare according to traditional medicine combined with tourism like Ho Chi Minh City", Dr. Khoa said. A survey by the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Tourism shows that after COVID-19, tourists are more interested in resort products and health care treatments. Ms. Bui Thi Ngoc Hieu, Deputy Director of the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Tourism, said that this is a good opportunity for the City to promote the development of medical tourism services. Recently, the Department of Tourism in coordination with the Department of Health has connected with more than 50 units including hospitals, medical facilities, spas, travel agencies, tourist accommodations... to build unique tourism products, suitable to the needs of tourists. In the immediate future, 30 medical tourism and wellness tourism products will be developed in 2023. “Currently, the city has medical tourism products but they are still in the early stages, in the potential form. In the long term, it is necessary to invest in infrastructure and train human resources specializing in healthcare, with knowledge of tourism, healthcare and foreign languages,” Ms. Bui Thi Ngoc Hieu added. Lesson 2: Reaching out for integration
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