Prime Minister Lê Minh Hưng, Minister of Health Đào Hồng Lan and delegates launch the Ninh Bình Campus of the Việt Đức Friendship Hospital in Ninh Bình Province at the ceremony on July 9. — VNS Photo Thanh Hải

NINH BÌNH — The Ministry of Health officially inaugurated the Ninh Bình Campus of the Việt Đức Friendship Hospital in the northern province of Ninh Bình on Thursday.

The move marks a significant milestone in the ministry’s strategy to expand the network of high-quality healthcare services, enhance regional medical capacity, minimise patient overload at central-level hospitals and bring specialised surgical services closer to the public.

Attending the ceremony, Prime Minister Lê Minh Hưng affirmed that bringing Ninh Bình facilities of both Việt Đức Friendship Hospital and Bạch Mai Hospital (both leading public hospitals based in Hà Nội) into operation is a crucial step in restructuring the healthcare network toward modernisation and alleviating the burden on central-level hospitals.

Prime Minister Lê Minh Hưng speaks at the event. — VNS Photo Thanh Hải

“The inauguration of the Ninh Bình facilities of Việt Đức and Bạch Mai hospitals holds special significance for the healthcare sector, Ninh Bình Province and localities across the region," said PM Hưng.

"Furthermore, the event demonstrates the strong determination of the Party, the State, the Government and the Ministry of Health to continuously strengthen efforts to protect, care for, and improve the people's health.

“The protection, care, and improvement of public health constitute not only a social welfare policy but also a vital foundation for development.

"Every healthcare facility brought into operation not only meets the need for medical examination and treatment but also helps enhance the quality of human resources, thereby boosting the economy's productivity, quality, and competitiveness, particularly during this new phase of the country's development.”

The Government leader also urged ministries, sectors, and localities to continue coordinating closely with the Ministry of Health on planning healthcare infrastructure development, training human resources, developing digital infrastructure, improving connectivity networks and effectively mobilising social resources.

"Our goal is not merely to build modern hospitals but to create a comprehensively developed healthcare ecosystem – one where every medical facility has the capacity to ensure quality, leverage its strengths, and best serve the public's healthcare needs," PM Hưng added.

He also asked the hospitals to continue reviewing their operations and ensuring all necessary conditions are met, with a focus on professional quality, patient safety, and medical ethics.

The PM suggested they should establish a unified management model and modern governance; drive development through innovation; prioritise professional quality and patient satisfaction; and build a foundation for sustainable growth based on advanced governance practices.

Furthermore, they should focus activities on intensifying training and the transfer of medical techniques to lower-level hospitals, thereby serving as a vital link between central and local healthcare systems.

PM Hưng added that regarding medium-term public investment for the 2026–30 period, the Government will continue to prioritise and allocate adequate resources to the healthcare sector and localities to further enhance capabilities and expertise, with a particular focus on increasing investment in medical equipment and facilities.

Minister of Health Đào Hồng Lan speaks at the event. — VNS Photo Thanh Hải

Minister of Health Đào Hồng Lan said that bringing the Ninh Binh campus of Việt Đức Hospital into operation is a concrete step toward realising those goals, while also helping to relieve the burden on central-level hospitals and improve public access to high-quality medical services.

In the coming period, Lan said, the ministry will focus on effectively implementing the Resolution of the 14th National Party Congress and Politburo Resolution No. 72, to build a healthcare system that is equitable, high-quality and efficient.

The health sector will also develop specialised healthcare services in tandem with strengthening grassroots healthcare; refine mechanisms and policies to develop a modern, integrated network of medical examination and treatment facilities; and accelerate digital transformation and service quality improvements, striving to ensure that all citizens have convenient and timely access to healthcare.

"A key strategic direction is the development of a network of specialised hospitals alongside the enhancement of local healthcare capacity," Minister Lan remarked.

"Tertiary-level hospitals must not only treat complex cases but also play a leading role in professional guidance, workforce training, scientific research, and technology transfer, thereby contributing to strengthening the entire system's capabilities.”

Envisioned as a modern, specialised tertiary-care hospital of regional calibre, the Ninh Bình campus of Việt Đức Hospital represents a large-scale investment featuring 1,000 beds, a construction footprint exceeding 30,500sq.m and a total floor area of ​​nearly 120,000sq.m.

The new facility features comprehensive infrastructure, with examination, treatment, surgical, intensive care, diagnostic and professional support areas organised in a modern, scientific and patient-friendly manner, fully meeting the operational requirements of a specialised tertiary-level hospital.

Comprehensive treatment capabilities have been established here across a wide range of specialised fields, including neurosurgery, cardiology, hepatobiliary and digestive surgery, orthopaedics, cranial and head-and-neck surgery, thoracic and spinal surgery, urology, microsurgery, paediatrics, intensive care and out-of-hospital emergency care.

Leading experts and physicians from Việt Đức Friendship Hospital in Hà Nội will directly participate in consultations, treatment, surgeries, training and technology transfer, ensuring consistent professional quality across both facilities.

Associate Professor Dr Dương Đức Hùng, director of Việt Đức Friendship Hospital, speaks at the event. — VNS Photo Thanh Hải

Associate Professor Dr Dương Đức Hùng, director of Việt Đức Friendship Hospital, said: “The launch of the Ninh Bình campus not only expands the hospital's scope for development but also demonstrates our determination to bring specialised medical techniques closer to the public.

"We aim to establish a modern, safe, and high-quality, patient-centred healthcare facility, thereby contributing to improved healthcare quality and effectively implementing the policy to alleviate overcrowding at central-level hospitals.”

Dr Hùng said that bringing the new campus into operation will help shorten emergency response times, reduce the rate of patient transfers, and lower travel and treatment costs for patients; simultaneously, it will enhance the capacity to manage severe and complex medical cases locally.

He added: “This also serves as a crucial foundation for establishing a modern, specialised, tertiary-level medical centre that meets the growing healthcare needs of the people in Ninh Bình and the southern Red River Delta and North Central Coast regions, thereby helping to minimise the number of Vietnamese patients seeking medical treatment abroad."

On the same day, PM Hưng also visited the Ninh Bình campus of Bạch Mai General Hospital. — VNS