US helps improve stroke care in Vietnam
VOV.VN - The United States Mission to Vietnam, through the US Agency for International Development (USAID), has announced training and technical support for Bach Mai Hospital Stroke Center to improve stroke care in Vietnam and the Mekong sub-region, the US Embassy said in a press release on January 16.
The announcement affirms the US support for strengthening health cooperation and assisting Vietnam’s critical medical facilities under the recently established US-Vietnam Comprehensive Strategic Partnership.
A memorandum of understanding to this effect was signed in Hanoi on January 16 between Assoc. Prof. Dao Xuan Co, director of Bach Mai Hospital, and Mazedul Haque, country manager of Federation Handicap International, the implementing partner of the USAID.
Under the signed document, in the next two years, Federation Handicap International will work with Bach Mai Hospital to build a specialized workforce through supporting postgraduate training specializing in stroke and cerebrovascular disease for doctors. It will help strengthen the delivery of multidisciplinary services for patients with specific attention to ensure a continuum of care throughout the care pathway; foster coordination, sharing of good practices and technical support through national and international networks; and build research capacities of the Stroke Center and the Rehabilitation Center of Bach Mai Hospital.
“We are pleased to continue the partnership with Bach Mai Hospital through its Stroke and Rehabilitation Center,” said USAID Mission Director Aler Grubbs. “We look forward to helping Vietnam expand the application of international best practices in saving lives and reducing disabilities among stroke victims.”
Vietnam is among the countries with the highest incidence rate of stroke, with about 200,000 stroke persons recorded every year. Stroke is the second most common cause of death in the country. Among survivors, this condition leaves a high rate of disability behind.
The United States Mission to Vietnam, through the USAID, and the US Centers for Disease Control (CDC) has been a partner with Bach Mai Hospital for over 30 years. Last year, USAID Administrator Samantha Power visited Bach Mai Hospital and in 2022 the US provided a new liquid oxygen system, the largest of 13 such systems provided by the US to health care facilities across Vietnam, to support the care of patients with severe cases of COVID-19 and beyond.
