Young volunteers visit the Thị Nghè Nursing Home for seniors in HCM City. — VNA/VNS Photo Hồng Giang HCM CITY — The private sector has an opportunity to build geriatric care facilities that provide good care for elderly people, given rising demand for such services, HCM City officials say. According to the municipal Department of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs, the need for nursing homes for the elderly will continue rising because of the nation’s rapidly ageing population. In Việt Nam, people above 60 years old accounted for over 12 per cent of the total population in 2020; and this is expected to rise to 20 per cent by 2038. The city now has 20 nursing homes, including eight public facilities looking after 1,555 elderly people, and 12 private ones taking care of 1,138 people. Nguyễn Văn Lâm, the department’s deputy director, said at a press meeting on Thursday that encouraging private investment in geriatric care was a necessity. Private nursing homes offer better … [Read more...] about HCM City urges private sector to invest in geriatric care
Geriatric care plan examples
Young Vietnamese turn to mortgages, installment plans to secure dream homes
Le Thi Bao Tran, a young white-collar worker in Ho Chi Minh City, has spent the past eight years moving between rented rooms, doing her best to save up enough money to purchase a home of her own. Like other young, white-collar workers who have moved to Ho Chi Minh City to pursue their careers, Tran hopes to eventually purchase a home in the city, but the rising cost of real estate has kept that dream out of reach. A lifelong dream Tran spent her college years moving between rental apartments in Binh Thanh District. At one point, she shared a tiny 10-square-meter apartment with a friend for just VND1.1 million ($47) per month, including utilities. During the dry season, the apartment would heat up like an oven, and the putrid smell from a nearby garbage dump would waft through the windows. "If you closed the door, you could hardly breathe. If you opened the door, you still couldn’t breathe because of the horrible smell," she shared. Things were not much better in the … [Read more...] about Young Vietnamese turn to mortgages, installment plans to secure dream homes
Orbis to assist over 60,000 Mekong Delta children with eye care next year
Orbis international organisation will support more than 60,000 children in the Mekong Delta region with eye check-ups and assist over 10,000 students with surgeries under a project slated for next year. Authorities of the Mekong Delta city of Can Tho on May 19 received representatives of the organisation regarding the integration of an eye screening project into annual health examination for children in 2023. Vice Chairman of the municipal People’s Committee Nguyen Thuc Hien spoke highly of Obis’ projects which help residents in the Mekong Delta access high-quality eye care services, asking the organisation to care more for rural children. He assigned relevant agencies to support and build specific plans for the launch of projects. Doris Macharia, Senior Vice President of Global Programmes of Orbit International, expressed her hope that in the coming year, hospitals and relevant agencies in Can Tho will continue to work with the non-profit organisation in the implementation of … [Read more...] about Orbis to assist over 60,000 Mekong Delta children with eye care next year
HCMC taking care of poor laborers
Laborers are having their health checked in the event ‘For the Health of Laborers’ In the event, nearly 600 female workers who have already recovered from Covid-19 disease had their physical and mental health checked carefully by doctors, plus corresponding healthcare advice. Poor female laborers with small children or being pregnant were offered gifts worth VND1 million (US$43.3) each. On the same day, at Linh Trung I Export Processing Zone in Thu Duc City, over 1,200 workers took part in the event ‘Worker’s Day – Fair of Sharing’, held by the Labor Union of Ho Chi Minh City Export Processing zone and Industrial Park Authority (HEPZA). All goods in the fair were sold at half price. On this occasion, the mentioned labor union signed a contract ‘Welfare for Union Members’ with the three units of Binh Thanh Hospital, Viet Phu Payment Services Support Corp., and Thien Ngoc Anh Commercial Investment Co. Ltd. (owner of Hanh Phuc Supermarket). Accordingly, the above units will offer … [Read more...] about HCMC taking care of poor laborers
Deploying public-private health plans
Vice chairman Torben Minko How do member companies of the European Chamber of Commerce in Vietnam (EuroCham) evaluate the potential of public-private partnership (PPP) development in Vietnam? Vietnam has a promising opportunity for PPP development with a dynamic population, an increasing middle-income class, and also a rising need for high-quality products and services. Currently, PPPs are not yet applied in the services area. Service-based PPPs can unlock further contributions from the private sector toward an inclusive, forward-looking, and sustainable healthcare system. As such, a legal framework is a key that is conducive to business via a predictable and sustainable environment. EuroCham’s Healthcare Forum includes three sector committees namely Pharma Group (PG), International Quality Medicines (IQMED), and Medical Device Diagnostics (MDDs). The key interests of EuroCham members in PPP include machine installation models in hospitals, addressing public health concerns, … [Read more...] about Deploying public-private health plans
PepsiCo Foundation funds expansion of She Feeds the World programme
The MoU was signed between the Partnership for Sustainable Agriculture in Vietnam, the National Agriculture Extension, and CARE, paving the way forward for the rollout of the Farming for Change – She Feeds the World project in Vietnam (SFtW Vietnam). The project aims to ensure small-scale farmers in Vietnam’s Central Highlands, particularly women and ethnic minorities, have more secure and resilient livelihoods for food, nutrition, and water security. The Central Highlands in Vietnam are a major agricultural hub, producing key food crops. However, the agricultural system in the region faces serious environmental, economic, and societal issues, including unsustainable agricultural practices and weak market linkage. The overuse of pesticides, fertilisers, and water resources are lowering the productivity of the land which is further exacerbated when farmers sell their products to local collectors who have limited bargaining power, earning them lower incomes. This particularly … [Read more...] about PepsiCo Foundation funds expansion of She Feeds the World programme
VN determinedly stops slow public investment projects
Deputy Prime Minister Le Minh Khai (first on the left) is investigating the construction site of Provincial Road No.910 in Can Tho City. (Photo: SGGP) The Transport Ministry reported that the land compensation step in the first stage of the mega North-South Expressway project has finished. However, some technical infrastructure has not been fully moved. The total expense for construction until now has reached VND20,087 billion ($867 million), accounting for 35.4 percent of the contract value, and 0.7 percent later than the planned one. The disbursement volume for the four projects to be completed this year is 53.4 percent of the contract value, which is 2.6 percent later than expected. In the Southern region, the 21-kilometer coastal road project from Rach Gia City to Hon Dat District of Kien Giang Province has the total investment of VND600 billion ($26 million), and is planned to complete two years after its commencement date of January 2020. Since the construction work is … [Read more...] about VN determinedly stops slow public investment projects
HCMC takes belated steps to sort out skyscraper mess
Experts say such tight restrictions should have been imposed long ago to avoid the current mess and chaos on many roads. Cars and motorbikes crowded Pho Quang Street in Tan Binh District on Tuesday morning last week, dragging themselves sluggishly towards the downtown area. The road, an entrance to the Tan Son Nhat Airport, is just two kilometers long and only eight meters wide. Yet there are 15 skyscrapers lining it, with tens of thousands of apartments, hotels and offices. The largest project on the street is an apartment complex with four blocks and 16 floors, hosting around 500 apartments. It has been open for about five years. There are other complexes with 8-10 floors and a hospital, so the street is always crowded. It gets hellish during rush hours. Pho Quang isn’t the only street plagued by quickly rising skyscrapers and infrastructures that can’t keep up with them. Nguyen Huu Tho, Nam Ky Khoi Nghia, Nguyen Thi Minh Khai and Mai Chi Tho are a few more examples. HCMC … [Read more...] about HCMC takes belated steps to sort out skyscraper mess
More favourable rule system urged for healthcare PPPs
Speakers at last week’s conference noted that dozens upon dozens of multinationals are interested in the healthcare PPP model in Vietnam. Photo: Chi Cuong At last week’s conference on the issue, hosted by VIR , Deputy Minister of Planning and Investment Tran Duy Dong said that Vietnam’s healthcare sector is facing a number of big issues, including rising infectious and non-communicable disease figures, hospital overload, and an ageing population. The pandemic has also revealed some weaknesses in the sector. “To further improve healthcare service quality and meet demand, mobilising financial resources for new development of infrastructure and medical equipment is a key requirement,” he noted. For the past five years, the government has looked to strengthen the implementation of a model for public-private partnerships (PPPs) for the public sector, including in healthcare services. However, according to VIR’s editor-in-chief Le Trong Minh, the picture of such investment in … [Read more...] about More favourable rule system urged for healthcare PPPs
Multinationals get health PPP fever
Multinationals get health PPP fever-illustration photo, source: freepik British science-led healthcare company GSK on May 11 launched its new legal entity in Vietnam, GSK Pharma Vietnam Co., Ltd., establishing $200 million capital into the country (see page 22). Luis Arosemena, senior vice president of GSK Emerging Markets, said this was an important milestone in the continued development of GSK in Vietnam, one of the top focus markets in the region. According to Oliver Todd, consul general and director for trade and investment at the British Consulate in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam is witnessing strong investment in healthcare and pharmaceuticals. “This investment and a focus on its impact is the reason why Vietnam has successfully developed its health system, improving the quality of treatment, expanding immunisation coverage and helping as many people as possible access basic medical care.” GSK is one of several multinational pharmaceutical companies with high investment … [Read more...] about Multinationals get health PPP fever