Patients at a healthcare, rehabilitation and treatment centre for Agent Orange and dioxin victims in Hà Nội. Photo suckhoedoisong.vn

HÀ NỘI — Thousands of Agent Orange (AO) and dioxin victims and their children have been provided with medical services as part of a project on healthcare and rehabilitation for victims between 2018-2022.

During the war in Việt Nam, the US military sprayed nearly 80 million litres of toxic chemicals containing 366kg of dioxin across a quarter of southern Việt Nam, destroying ecosystems and causing many species of animals and plants to disappear, according to the Việt Nam Association of Victims of Agent Orange.

As many as 4.8 million Vietnamese people were exposed to the toxins, and more than 3 million were victims. Many died, and others are still struggling with serious diseases, according to the association.

As part of the most recent project, 35,817 AO and dioxin victims and their children have been listed for health monitoring, and many have been regularly screened to detect health problems early under the project, the Department of Health Examination and Treatment Management announced at a conference in Hà Nội on Monday to review the project.

The event aimed to continue spreading the health care and rehabilitation model for AO and dioxin victims nationwide in the future.

Deputy Minister of Health Trần Văn Thuấn asked agencies and localities to multiply effective community-based models to provide healthcare and rehabilitation services to AO victims and people with disabilities while combining the activities with other medical programmes in the localities.

The project on healthcare and rehabilitation for the victims for 2018-2022 was carried out in Hải Phòng City and Lào Cai, Thái Nguyên, Quảng Ninh, Thanh Hoá, Nghệ An, Hà Tĩnh, Quảng Nam, Bình Định, Đồng Tháp and Bến Tre provinces. The ministry assigned the department to work closely with six centrally-run and relevant units on the project.

Over 31,500 children under six were screened and had their functional disabilities restored. As many as 1,290 autistic children were examined, diagnosed and identified with the need for rehabilitation intervention, while 478 families of autistic children were instructed on theoretical and practical intervention methods.

Việt Nam has developed a rehabilitative service network with two hospitals and rehabilitation centres, 38 provincial rehabilitation and traditional medicine hospitals, and 550 rehabilitation departments of general hospitals, and central, provincial and district hospitals.

More than 9,000 out of the 11,000 communes with medical staff have been trained in rehabilitation. About 25 per cent of communes can provide rehabilitation services in the commune and community-based rehabilitation. — VNS