Doctors examine a diabetes patient at the Tuệ Tĩnh Hospital in Hà Nội. — Photo vutm.edu.vn

HÀ NỘI — The health ministry’s Medical Services Administration (MSA) and the Embassy of Denmark in Việt Nam will continue a strategic collaboration on education on diabetes and other non-communicable diseases for the 2021-23 period.

With support of Novo Nordisk in Việt Nam, the collaboration will focus on capacity building and technical updates for healthcare professionals via virtual courses. It will strengthen disease awareness education for patients and the public on diabetes and other non-communicable diseases via a website on diabetes at https://daithaoduong.kcb.vn.

It will also further facilitate collaboration, best practice and information sharing to improve quality of care for diabetes and other non-communicable diseases.

“Currently, the whole country and the health sector are fighting against the 4th wave of the COVID-19 pandemic. People at high risk during a pandemic are those with underlying medical conditions such as non-communicable diseases including diabetes. Therefore, improving diabetes care is very important in diabetes treatment and COVID-19 pandemic prevention in Việt Nam,” said MSA director Associate Professor Lương Ngọc Khuê.

“The Embassy of Denmark in Việt Nam is glad to see the collaboration on health between Denmark and Việt Nam being strengthened, and hopes that this MOU, along with the recently signed Strategic Sector collaboration in Health, will make a valuable contribution to the Vietnamese people,” said Troels Jakobsen, Counsellor at the Embassy of Denmark in Việt Nam.

“We are proud to have this opportunity to continue our support for the bilateral partnership between the Danish Embassy and Ministry of Health to raise public awareness of diabetes and improve the quality of care for diabetes at all levels, especially primary care, through different e-health education initiatives such as diabetes journey application and diabetes website,” said Hassan Mahmoud Fahmi, Chief representative of Novo Nordisk office in Việt Nam.

Diabetes is one of the most common non-communicable diseases worldwide. Diabetes leads to many serious complications, and is the leading cause of heart disease, blindness, kidney failure and amputation.

According to the World Diabetes Federation, 463 million adults (age 20-79) or one in 11 adults was living with diabetes in 2019 globally. It is estimated that this number will increase to about 700 million people by 2045. However, nearly half of people living with diabetes (age 20-79) are undiagnosed (46.5 per cent) and 52.1 per cent in the Western Pacific region. — VNS