Father Dominic Đinh Trần Thanh Tú (left), head of the Mai Khôi-Đồng Tiến Charity Clinic in HCM , assists an elderly patient arriving for a medical check-up. — VNA/VNS Photos Mạnh Linh

HCM CITY — For more than 17 years, the Mai Khôi-Đồng Tiến Clinic in HCM City has been a vital healthcare lifeline, providing completely free medical check-ups and treatment to thousands of low-income workers and seniors.

Operating every weekday afternoon on the grounds of Đồng Tiến Church in Hòa Hưng Ward, the charity clinic helps bridge a critical gap for vulnerable patients facing chronic illnesses and financial hardship.

The rhythm of the clinic begins long before its official 4pm opening, with the waiting area coming alive early in the afternoon to the low murmur of arriving patients.

For many, including 64-year-old Trương Cẩm Hoa, the courtyard has become a second home.

Suffering from severe knee osteoarthritis for more than a decade, Hoa cycles from her home in Vườn Lài Ward at 3.30pm just to submit her medical booklet.

For the past six years, the clinic has been her physical and financial anchor. She visits twice a month for check-ups and receives her medication entirely free of charge, significantly improving her mobility and eliminating her constant anxiety over medical expenses.

"The doctors, priests, and nuns treat us like family. Even during the darkest days of the COVID-19 pandemic, they risked their safety to ensure our prescriptions were filled," said Hoa.

“Before long holiday closures such as Tết, they always make sure we leave with a full month's supply."

For Trương Thị Bớt, 65, the clinic represents more than a decade of continuous, reliable care for vestibular disorders, cerebral ischaemia, and joint degeneration.

A visit to a public hospital could easily cost hundreds of thousands of đồng, excluding the expense of daily medication, she explains while waiting for her prescription.

"For someone who requires lifelong medication simply to maintain proper cerebral blood flow, this place is quite literally a lifesaver."

The clinic’s reputation for thorough care also attracts patients who have public health insurance.

Nguyễn Ngọc Mai, 71, says while she can get State-subsidised care, the overcrowding at public hospitals is too gruelling.

"At the hospital, I have to wake up at 5am just to secure a queue token, only to spend hours waiting in packed corridors. Here, the pace is humane. The doctors actually listen to you and examine you with genuine care."

What makes Mai Khôi-Đồng Tiến function seamlessly is the calibre of its medical staff. It has become a voluntary crossroads for some of the city's leading medical professionals, who seem to view their work there as a deeply personal commitment.

Dr Trần Văn Tạo reviews a medical booklet and prescribes medication for a patient at the Mai Khôi-Đồng Tiến Charity Clinic in HCM City.

Dr Trần Văn Tạo, a physician at the HCM City Hospital for Tropical Diseases, has been a fixture at the clinic since it first opened.

"Every Monday afternoon belongs to these patients," he says while reviewing a medical booklet.

"Beyond that, whenever the clinic faces a shortage or a sudden influx of patients, I rearrange my hospital schedule to step in. It’s about showing up for the community."

He is not alone. The clinic’s roster includes specialists from major municipal institutions, including Nhân dân 115, Nguyễn Trãi, and Trưng Vương hospitals.

Working entirely without remuneration, these professionals bring tertiary-level expertise directly to the grassroots level, removing many of the bureaucratic barriers often associated with modern medicine.

The roots of this sanctuary date back to 2003, when the Ministers of the Infirm (Camillians) launched grassroots healthcare initiatives for the poor within the Archdiocese of Sài Gòn.

Recognising a critical unmet need, the Camillian priests and nuns established a formal charity clinic near the Nhiêu Lộc Canal in 2007.

By 2009, it had relocated to its current home in Đồng Tiến Church.

Preserving human dignity

The clinic maintains a demanding schedule, treating 60-70 patients every day from Monday to Friday.

Its impact has spread far beyond the city’s boundaries. Charity groups regularly bus in impoverished patients from provinces such as Đồng Tháp for periodic examinations.

Alongside general internal medicine, the clinic has also established a fully free dental care unit.

Yet keeping this lifeline afloat remains a constant financial challenge, as it relies on an unpredictable patchwork of donations from private benefactors and pharmaceutical companies.

A patient receives free dental treatment at the Mai Khôi-Đồng Tiến Charity Clinic in HCM City, which provides both general internal medicine and dental care completely free for underprivileged patients.

Father Dominic Đinh Trần Thanh Tú, head of the clinic, says while there is invaluable support in the form of medicines and short-term grants, sustainable long-term backing remains elusive.

"With patient numbers rising, our current resources are stretched to their absolute limits."

Nonetheless, those who run the clinic refuse to let financial pressures compromise the quality of care.

For Tú, the ultimate measure of their work is restoring the human spirit.

“The absolute cornerstone of the clinic’s mission is respecting the dignity of every patient.”

When people who have been marginalised by poverty walk through the clinic’s doors and feel genuinely seen, respected, and cared for, it gives them the psychological strength to fight their illnesses.

“We aren't just giving out prescriptions; we are restoring hope."

As the evening shift draws to a close and patients like Hoa cycle back into the neon haze of the city, they carry with them more than free medicine. They leave with the reassurance that even in the country's fastest growing economic hub, no one has to be invisible. — VNS