The coordinated efforts of neurosurgery, spinal surgery, orthopaedic trauma, and anaesthesiology and resuscitation teams were carried out at the newly opened Việt Nam-Germany Hospital in Ninh Bình Province during its first week of operation. — VNA/VNS Photo

HÀ NỘI — Over the past four decades of Đổi mới (Renewal), Việt Nam’s healthcare sector has made remarkable progress and is now well positioned to achieve further breakthroughs by harnessing science, technology and innovation to improve public health care in the new era, according to experts from the Việt Nam Union of Science and Technology Associations (VUSTA).

Dr Nguyễn Huy Quang, head of the advisory, social criticism and assessment board under VUSTA’s Việt Nam Medical Association and former director of the Ministry of Health’s Legal Affairs Department, said the healthcare system has undergone a profound transformation over the past 40 years.

Through advances in medical technology, scientific research and clinical practice, the country has narrowed the gap with leading healthcare systems in the region and increasingly meets international standards.

To sustain this momentum, he proposed several strategic priorities, including reforming healthcare financing by diversifying supplementary health insurance packages to better meet people’s needs, and establishing a reinsurance fund to provide stronger financial protection for patients with catastrophic illnesses requiring high treatment costs.

He also called for greater investment in local healthcare through the expansion of the family doctor model, with primary care physicians serving as 'gatekeepers' responsible for screening, referral and patient management. Public investment should prioritise upgrading commune- and ward-level health stations rather than concentrating resources solely on major central hospitals, he said.

Digital transformation was identified as another key driver of reform. Quang recommended nationwide integration of healthcare data, universal deployment of electronic medical records, wider adoption of telemedicine and online consultations and digital health insurance payment systems to support the development of smart hospitals.

He also highlighted the importance of strengthening healthcare governance by separating financial and personnel management from professional medical practice, and enhancing the self-reliance of its national healthcare supply chain. This can be done by prioritising the development of specialised industrial clusters for the production of pharmaceutical ingredients, innovative medicines and disposable medical devices, Quang said.

Alongside the public healthcare system, non-public science and technology organisations have increasingly contributed innovative community healthcare models.

Dr Trần Huy Thông, director of VUSTA's Centre for Research, Consulting and Support of Community Health, said these organisations have become an integral part of Việt Nam’s healthcare system by reaching vulnerable groups, providing policy recommendations and promoting digital health innovation.

Among their most successful initiatives are peer counselling networks for people living with HIV/AIDS and tuberculosis. By training former patients as counsellors, these programmes help reduce stigma, strengthen treatment adherence and provide cost-effective support that can be readily replicated nationwide.

Another model, the Friends Helping Friends clubs, supports patients with chronic diseases, such as diabetes and hypertension, as well as older adults. Through small community-based groups, participants encourage one another to follow treatment plans and adopt healthier lifestyles, demonstrating a people-centred approach to community healthcare.

Thông proposed expanding health insurance coverage to include preventive care, primary healthcare and telemedicine services provided by qualified non-public institutions. He also recommended shifting towards a public service procurement mechanism, enabling social organisations and private providers to deliver community healthcare services under Government contracts.

He also called for stronger integration of national health data through open application programming interfaces, allowing health information from non-public providers to be connected with Việt Nam’s electronic medical record system and the VNeID digital health platform to create an integrated ecosystem. — VNA/VNS