Samples collected for COVID-19 testing. — VNA/VNS Photo

HÀ NỘI — HCM City’s health department on Sunday announced a total of 18 new Omicron cases, all imported cases that were quarantined on arrival.

This included a fully vaccinated 82-year-old woman returning from the US, who, given her advanced age and multiple underlying health issues, is currently under treatment at the HCM City Hospital for Tropical Diseases.

The remaining 17 cases are all asymptomatic, consistent with other Omicron incidents recorded in Việt Nam.

They are currently under quarantine and medical observation at the No.12 COVID-19 field hospital in Thủ Đức City.

The latest new Omicron patients have brought the national tally to 68 in nine provinces and cities: Hà Nội (1), Quảng Nam (27), HCM City (30), Hải Dương (1), Hải Phòng (1), Thanh Hoá (2), Đà Nẵng (3), Khánh Hoà (2), and Long An (1) – all foreign arrivals that were isolated upon entry.

The health ministry has repeatedly warned of the contagiousness of the new variant, especially among the unvaccinated, which could lead to an overwhelmed healthcare system.

The ministry is closely following the pandemic progression with regards to Omicron, and frequently in contact with the WHO to get updates on the variant.

Regarding the support from the military medicine units to help the former outbreak epicentre, HCM City’s health department said after five months of deployment, 406 students and doctors of the Military Medicine Academy under the Ministry of Defence had completed their missions of providing assistance to 391 mobile medical stations in the city.

Mobile medical station was one of the 10 exemplary models of HCM City and was nominated for the 2021 Việt Nam Medical Achievements Awards.

The first mobile station was set up in District 3 on August 20, 2021, during the height of the severe outbreak in HCM City, and very quickly after that, a total of 525 stations were created to help provide care for COVID-19 patients that can be treated at home.

Tăng Chí Thượng, director of HCM City’s health department, said in the outbreak, the pilot deployment of mobile medical stations had helped reduce deaths and severe diseases among the COVID-19 cases, alleviate pressure at the centralised quarantine facilities and field hospitals, as well as reduce trauma and psychological problems among the infected.

After the outbreak, Thượng said the utmost priority should be on beefing up grassroots-level medical stations. — VNS