Seminar discusses role of family medicine

The seminar, entitled “Enhancing quality of primary care following the principal of family medicine”, was co-organised by Hue University of Medicine and Pharmacy under Hue University and the Wallonie Brussels delegation. 

Assoc. Prof. Dr Luong Ngoc Khue, Director of the Ministry of Health (MoH)’s Medical Services Administration, said in 2013, the MoH approved a project to build and develop the model of family clinic in eight provinces and cities nationwide.

The country currently has 340 family clinics, including 256 public and 84 private ones. However, there is a limit of skilled personnel, infrastructure, coordinating regulations and information exchanges between those clinics and medical system, he noted.

Khue said that Vietnam needs to build a patient care database and a system of electrical medical records in family clinics nationwide. Training courses for medical personnel should be held frequently, he added, stressing the need to raise public awareness about grassroots clinics and quality of medical treatment.

Rector of the Hue University of Medicine and Pharmacy Cao Ngoc Thanh said as the world and Vietnam’s disease models have seen many changes, the family clinics and primary care following the principal of family medicine will meet the demand for comprehensive and qualified health treatment.

At the seminar, participants also discussed ways to establish coordination mechanisms for health care which optimise effects of medical treatment for senior citizens and manage acute non-communicable diseases in grassroots clinics.