HCM City seeks to build general hospital on Con Dao Island
The centre not only serves residents living on the island, but also receives tens of thousands of visitors every year, according to Assoc Prof Dr Tang Chi Thuong, Director of the HCM CIty Department of Health.
Con Dao Military-Civilian Medical Centre on Con Dao Island. (Photo: HCM City Department of Health)
HCM City (VNS/VNA) – Ho Chi Minh City's health sector will take steps to enhance its medical capacity on Con Dao Island after the merger of HCM City and provinces of Binh Duong and Ba Ria-Vung Tau, according to the city’s Department of Health.
The department on July 3 held a meeting with leading medical experts to discuss measures to improve capacity for Con Dao Military-Civilian Medical Centre on Con Dao Island.
The centre not only serves residents living on the island, but also receives tens of thousands of visitors every year, according to Assoc Prof Dr Tang Chi Thuong, director of the department.
Despite being newly built and equipped with modern medical devices in recent years, a shortage of medical professionals has resulted in a long-standing concern about medical emergencies of locals, tourists and investors.
At the meeting, the department outlined a two-phase plan to improve the medical capacity on the island.
In the first phase, skilled doctors with specialities such as obstetrics, surgery, internal medicine, and paediatrics will be rotated to work at Con Dao Military-Civilian Medical Centre while remote consultations and online continuous education for medical staff at Con Dao Military - Civilian Medical Centre will also be implemented.
During this phase, starting in the third quarter, the focus will be capacity building for obstetrics, trauma, internal medicine, and pediatric emergency care to meet the common medical care needs of locals and visitors on the island.
In addition, the establishment of a blood bank to ensure safe emergency care in obstetrics, surgery and critical situations is also a priority.
In the second phase, the department will develop a project with strategic policies for health care services on the island and build a general hospital with the professional support of major hospitals in the city.
The department will soon organise a trip to Con Dao Island with the participation of leading experts to assess the situation and develop a suitable, feasible and sustainable implementation plan.
The city’s healthcare after the merger would not only expand geographically but also expand in service to bring quality treatment to the remote island, Thuong said./.
The rescue operation was carried out by the forces of the Con Dao National Park Management Board in cooperation with Con Dao Resort Company, following separate discoveries on the morning of May 7 along Dat Doc beach within the Six Senses Con Dao resort.
Con Dao, once turned into a “hell on earth” by the colonialists and imperialists to suppress Vietnamese patriots and revolutionaries, became a sacred historical place and epitomised the fighting spirit, revolutionary heroism, and ardent patriotism of the Vietnamese people.
Vietnam now boasts a nationwide healthcare network with 1,665 hospitals, 384 of which are non-public, supported by local commune- and ward-level stations. At the end of 2024, hospital bed capacity reached 34 per 10,000 people, slightly above the global average.
The 56-year-old patient from Quang Tri province was discharged in stable condition as he no longer experienced shortness of breath and was able to walk, move around, and eat normally.
Associate Professor Dr. Nguyen Vu Trung, Director of the Pasteur Institute, said that under the MoU, the two sides committed to promoting diverse and practical collaborative activities, including joint conferences and workshops, exchanges of scholars, researchers and students, sharing academic materials, and the development of specific programmes and projects in scientific research, training, and epidemic prevention.
TytoCare, a leading Israeli telemedicine company based in Netanya, is willing to work with Vietnamese regulators, insurers, and healthcare providers to develop a sustainable digital health ecosystem.
The partnership is under the framework of a Memorandum of Understanding on the development and implementation of the National Action Plan on Breast Cancer and Cervical Cancer Prevention and Control, signed in Hanoi on July 22.
An estimated 7 million Vietnamese are currently living with diabetes, but about 50% remain undiagnosed, a dangerous gap that is fuelling serious, preventable complications and increasing the burden on the healthcare system.
In 2024, Vietnam achieved 99% coverage for the first dose of the diphtheria, tetanus and pertussis vaccine, up from 80% in 2023. Immunisation coverage in the country has not only rebounded to the high levels seen before the COVID-19 pandemic but has now surpassed the rates recorded in 2019.
Health authorities in HCM City have issued an urgent alert after six people died from dengue fever, amid a spike in infections driven by the onset of the rainy season.
During the peak months of July and August 2025, the National Institute of Haematology and Blood Transfusion (NIHBT) needs at least 90,000 units of blood to supply 180 hospitals in the northern region. However, despite continuous efforts, the reserve blood is still short of 30,000 units.
The Hanoi ceremony highlighted efforts to ensure all citizens, especially women and youth, can access accurate information and healthcare services to make informed reproductive choices.
After such a long time, the law has revealed many limitations, prompting the Ministry of Health (MoH) to gather opinions to amend the law to give more chances to thousands of patients every year.
Currently, cardiovascular specialists from the 108 Military Central Hospital are working alongside a team of Prof.Dr. Jan D. Schmitto, Deputy Director of MHH’s Department of Cardiac, Thoracic, Transplantation and Vascular Surgery on clinical trials for MCS devices, implanted in heart failure patients either as a bridge to transplantation or as permanent treatment.
Not only does Vietnam attract international tourists with its landscapes, culture, and cuisine, but it is also gradually becoming a reliable destination for medical treatment, offering high-quality services at reasonable costs.
Over the past six months, 150 communal health stations in provinces including Ha Giang, Bac Kan, Lang Son, Lao Cai, Lai Chau, Yen Bai, Tay Ninh, Hau Giang, Ben Tre and Ca Mau have been equipped with information technology systems. In addition, 117 key provincial healthcare workers have received training, with thousands more expected to follow.
During the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, the Ministry of Health swiftly launched a telemedicine programme, connecting more than 1,000 medical establishments nationwide. The model, which remains in operation, has benefited tens of thousands of patients, including foreign nationals.
After more than three weeks of intensive treatment, the patient's pneumonia improved, breathing stabilised, sedation was reduced, and the breathing tube was removed. He is now conscious, able to eat orally, and in recovery.
Vietnam is currently reshaping its grassroots healthcare system to better serve a rapidly ageing population, address changing disease burdens, and meet rising public expectations fuelled by economic growth.
