Local administrations to play greater role in blindness prevention
Local administrations should play a greater role in the national strategy on blindness prevention, head of the national steering committee for blindness control Nguyen Viet Tien said.
Hanoi (VNA) – Local administrations should play a greater rolein the national strategy on blindness prevention, head of the national steeringcommittee for blindness control and Deputy Health Minister Nguyen Viet Tiensaid at the committee’s debut meeting on March 24.
Deputy Minister Tien also said the chairpersons of People’s Committeesof provinces and centrally-run cities have the responsibility to allocate andensure resources to carry out the strategy on blindness control.
Delivering a report on blindness prevention in 2016-2017, Director ofthe Central Eye Hospital Nguyen Xuan Hiep, who is a deputy head of the steeringcommittee, said his hospital, in coordination with the Health Ministry, theWorld Health Organisation and domestic charity organisations, conducted 1,000cataract surgeries free of charge for the poor in 11 provinces in 2016. Thehospital also provided eye care training to 1,500 medical workers of communaland district clinics, and transferred eye surgical techniques to manyprovincial hospitals across the country.
This year, the Central Eye Hospital plans to transfer medical techniquesto 23 medical establishments.
According to the doctor, Vietnam currently has around 2,000 eye doctorsand about the same number of nurses specialising in ophthalmology. The numberis too small compared to eye care and treatment needs, he said, noting that shortagesof human resources and medical equipment are posing great challenges to theprevention and treatment of blindness in the country.
The national strategy on blindness control to 2020 with a vision to 2030was approved on December 31, 2006.
The strategy sets the goal of improve access to services in preventing,early detecting, treating eye disorders, thus reducing the rate of blindnessdue to preventable diseases. The overall target is to reduce the rate ofblindness to below 45 per 10,000 persons by 2020 while increasing the ratio ofpeople receiving cataract surgery to more than 25 per 10,000 and the rate ofdiabetic patients receiving periodical eye care to more than 45 percent.-VNA
Vietnam has achieved positive results in reducing the rate of blindness, with only 1.8 percent of the country’s population suffering from blindness in 2015, heard conference in HCM City on Nov. 3.
Experts have warned that HCM City and the Mekong Delta region are witnessing a worrying uptick in the number of diabetic patients, and with this, a heightened risk of diabetic eye diseases.
The patient, Tieu Viet But, born in 1970 and residing in Binh Tri commune, Binh Son district, the central province of Quang Ngai, was working aboard fishing vessel Qng – 95657TS when the incident occurred at 7:00 am.
All drugs entering hospitals must have a clear origin, so counterfeit drugs are only in the market, not in hospital, affirmed Minister of Health Dao Hong Lan.
To achieve its goal of becoming a developed nation by 2045, Vietnam is prioritising the integration of AI and digital tools into the training of future doctors, said Assoc. Prof. Dr. Nguyen Viet Nhung, Dean of Medicine at University of Medicine and Pharmacy, Vietnam National University (VNU) Hanoi.
Health experts called for collective disease prevention and integrated solutions to achieve zero dengue deaths in the country at an online talk show on June 14.
The PM called for closer, broader, and more effective cooperation with Vietnamese partners, guided by the principles of mutual benefit, joint efforts, shared outcomes, and common development, including promoting stronger public-private partnerships and collaboration with businesses.
Renowned for its expertise in complex surgeries, the hospital has attracted foreign patients seeking treatment for conditions such as kidney and urinary tract stones, urological and gastrointestinal cancers, and male reproductive disorders. Most procedures are performed using advanced techniques, including laparoscopy and robotic surgery. T
Leading Vietnamese companies specialising in respiratory and dermatological treatments, traditional medicine, immune support supplements, and functional foods will have an opportunity to connect with international distributors and secure export deals.
The project aimed to enable early detection and reduce the risk of dangerous complications, targeting patients with chronic diabetes, cardiovascular conditions and metabolic disorders.
A 2023 report by the Vietnam Health Economics Association estimated that the total cost of tobacco-related healthcare and economic losses reached 108 trillion VND (4.14 billion USD) annually – equivalent to 1.14% of GDP and five times higher than the budget revenue generated by the tobacco industry.
All eligible patients will receive surgical interventions and post-operative care in accordance with Vietnamese medical standards and global care protocols.
Medical screenings and surgical interventions for children with disabilities are being carried out at health centers across Dien Bien. So far this year, 242 children have been identified for diagnosis, treatment, surgery, and the provision of assistive devices.
The Red Journey has become the country’s largest and most effective blood donation campaign, leaving a strong impression on the national voluntary blood donation movement.
This case marks the ninth fetal cardiac intervention conducted in HCM City, and it was considered the most technically demanding to date due to the fetus’s extremely early gestational age and the severity of the condition as diagnosed with aortic atresia.
The groundbreaking ceremony took place one day after the VNVC Vaccine JS Company and Sanofi Group exchanged cooperation documents on vaccine production technology transfer under the witness of State President Luong Cuong and French President Emmanuel Macron.
Vietnam’s traditional medicine took centre stage at the International Congress Biopharm Nonclinical Development, BioNCiD 2025, held on May 25-26 in the Cuban city of Varadero, amid growing global interest in sustainable healthcare solutions.
Under the agreement, VNVC and Sanofi will gradually implement technology transfers to enable domestic production of several key Sanofi vaccines that are widely used in Vietnam. In addition, Sanofi will support VNVC in training human resources and quality management in vaccine research and manufacturing.
According to the World Health Organisation, more than 25,000 COVID-19 cases have been recorded globally over the past month. Notably, from January 1 to May 10, Thailand reported nearly 54,000 infections and 16 deaths. The rise in cases in Thailand has been linked to the spread of XBB.1.16 subvariant.
Illustrative image (Source: VNA) 
