VietNamNet
Bridge – Viet Nam still faces long-term
threats including A/H7N9 bird flu and new infectious diseases such as Ebola,
Zika, Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) and other problems such as high
blood pressure, diabetes, cancer and unsafe food.
Associate
Professor Nguyen Cong Khan, director of the Department of Science, Technology
and Training under the Ministry of Health (MoH), made these remarks at the
national scientific conference on public health, which was held yesterday
(April 25) in Ha Noi.
In a
presentation, Khan said that high blood pressure increased from 1.9 per cent of
the total population in 1976 to 27.2 per cent of the total population in 2008.
More than
78,400 enterprises violated food safety and hygiene regulations last year, and
measles and dengue fever are at high risk for outbreaks.
In
addition, only half of pregnant ethnic minority women received regular
pregnancy examinations, he said.
Le Vu
Anh, president of the Vietnam Public Health Association, said another problem
is that the country’s ageing population is quickly increasing, and geriatric
care is not up to par.
Ten per
cent of the elderly had to live in temporary houses, especially in central and
southern provinces, while only five per cent of them had pensions.
A total
of 95 per cent of the elderly suffered from chronic diseases, and many suffered
from more than two diseases.
Professor
Nguyen Viet Tien, Deputy Minister of Health, said that going forward, public
health researchers should focus on health insurance and hospital
administration, non-infectious and infectious diseases, food hygiene and
safety, and geriatric health.
Treatment
should go hand-in-hand with prevention, Tien said, adding that an overarching
health information system should be set up.
Universal
health insurance and health equality should be promoted to ensure that everyone
can access health care services, he said.
Le Vu Anh
suggested that the elderly be encouraged to join community activities to
improve their health.
Through
these activities, the elderly could learn from each other, help each other and
contribute to the community’s development, he said.
The
elderly would feel that they were respected and would be in better physical and
psychological condition, he added.
During
the national conference, experts from the MoH and non-governmental
organisations, lecturers, researchers and postgraduates in the public health
sector shared public health results and discussed ways to apply scientific
research to real situations.
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