An artist's impression of the Health Science Institute in Cần Thơ City.—VNA/VNS Photo Ánh Tuyết

CẦN THƠ — The first Health Science Institute in the Mekong Delta is set to open in the first quarter of 2025.

The institute, located in Ninh Kiều District, Cần Thơ City, will support teaching, learning and research activities for lecturers and students in health-related fields of Nam Cần Thơ University from the 2024-25 academic year.

The institute is being invested by Nam Cần Thơ University, with Nam Miền Nam Group Joint Stock Company as the primary contractor.

Principal of Nam Cần Thơ University Nguyễn Văn Quang, said the institute covered approximately 26,000 sq.m, with an investment of around VNĐ600 billion (US$24.3 million) for construction and equipment.

It is housed within a ten-storey structure and will include 83 functional rooms and 11 lecture halls.

After 15 months of construction, the institute has now been completed in terms of an external frame, ready for completing the interiors and exteriors.

For the 2024-25 academic year, the university would admit students into 42 undergraduate programmes, prominently including health-related fields such as medicine, including nursing and pharmacy disciplines, dentistry and laboratory technologies.

Notably, the university will also welcome 150 international students from countries including India, Sri Lanka, Nepal and the Middle East.

The international students would be enrolled in health programmes accredited by the university through agreements with the Việt Nam Medical Educations (VMED).

“The opening of the institute is significant, enhancing practical training opportunities through a simulated hospital model,” said Nguyễn Văn Quang.

The sixth and seventh floors of the institute would be designed as a pre-clinical hospital to support teaching in undergraduate and postgraduate health science programmes, as well as study for Objective Structured Clinical Examinations (OSCEs) and Objective Structured Practical Examinations (OSPEs), skill training in hospitals and medical training in local clinics.

Other areas of the institute would be dedicated to various functional zones, including operating rooms, dental areas, obstetrics and gynaecology, paediatrics, emergency care, simulated patient rooms and virtual reality laboratories.

According to the recently released 2024 Việt Nam University Rankings, Nam Cần Thơ University has risen to 61st place out of over 230 universities nationwide, a 37-place improvement from 2023.

The university is also now listed among reputable medical schools by the World Directory of Medical Schools.

The recognition paves the way for the university medical students to have the opportunity to sit for the prestigious United States Medical Licensing Examination, qualifying them as international medical professionals.— VNS