What is Measles? What are the requirements for school medical staff in Vietnam?

What is Measles?

Pursuant to Chapter 1 of Decision 1327/QD/BYT of 2014 on the definition of measles:

Measles is an infectious disease causing outbreaks transmitted through the respiratory tract caused by the measles virus. The disease primarily affects children under 5 years old, often occurring in the winter-spring seasons, and can also appear in adults who have not been vaccinated or have been incompletely vaccinated.

The disease is characterized by fever, inflammation of the respiratory tract, conjunctivitis, and rash, and can lead to many complications such as pneumonia, encephalitis, otitis media, corneal ulcers, diarrhoea, etc., which can be fatal.

What is Measles? What are the requirements for school medical staff in Vietnam?​ (Image from the Internet)

What are the requirements for school medical staff in Vietnam?

Pursuant to Clause 2, Article 8 of Joint Circular 13/2016/TTLT-BYT-BGDDT:

Ensure the conditions for medical rooms, school medical staff

...

2. School medical staff

a) School medical staff must have a professional qualification of intermediate medical practitioner or higher. Based on the practical conditions at the locality, schools shall arrange school medical staff to meet the regulations at this point or sign contracts with the commune-level Health Stations or healthcare facilities from polyclinics or higher to care for students' health;

b) School medical staff must regularly update professional medical knowledge through workshops, training, and professional practice fostering organized by the Health and Education sectors to perform the regulated tasks;

c) School medical staff are responsible for advising and organizing implementation according to regulations in Articles 9, 10, and other tasks assigned by the school leadership.

Thus, school medical staff must meet the following conditions:

- Must have a professional qualification of intermediate medical practitioner or higher.

- Must regularly update professional medical knowledge through workshops, training, and professional practice fostering organized by the Health and Education sectors to perform the regulated tasks.

How to organize activities for managing, protecting, and caring for students' health in Vietnam?

Pursuant to Article 9 of Joint Circular 13/2016/TTLT-BYT-BGDDT, the school is required to perform activities for managing, protecting, and caring for students' health including:

- Conduct health checks at the beginning of the school year to assess nutritional and health status: measure height and weight for children under 36 months; measure height, weight, blood pressure, heart rate, and vision for students 36 months and older.

- Measure height, weight, and record growth charts, monitor physical development for children under 24 months monthly and for children aged 24 months to 6 years quarterly; monitor Body Mass Index (BMI) at least twice per school year to advise on proper nutrition and physical activity for general students.

- Regularly monitor students' health, detect vision impairment, scoliosis, dental diseases, mental health disorders, and other illnesses for handling, refer to healthcare facilities according to regulations, and implement appropriate learning and training policies based on health status.

- Coordinate with eligible healthcare facilities to organize specialized medical care and treatment for students.

- First aid, emergency care must comply with the current regulations of the Ministry of Health.

- Advise students, teachers, parents, or guardians of students on issues related to diseases, physical and mental development of students; guide students in self-health care; in cases where schools have disabled students, advise and support their integration.

- Provide guidance to organize school meals ensuring proper nutrition, diversity of foods, suitable for the subjects and age group for schools with boarding or semi-boarding students.

- Collaborate with local healthcare facilities to organize vaccination, disease prevention campaigns for students.

- Periodically inform at least once per school year and when necessary about students' health status to parents or students' guardians. School medical staff evaluate students' health at the end of each educational level to serve as a basis for health monitoring in the next educational level.

- Prepare and record into medical examination books, students' health monitoring books, and comprehensive health status monitoring books.

- Regularly inspect and supervise learning conditions, sanitation of school premises, food safety, provision of drinking water, handwashing soap. Proactively implement sanitation measures and epidemic prevention policies as stipulated.

- Organize the implementation of health programs, hygiene awareness campaigns, disease prevention, increase physical activity, proper nutrition, create a smoke-free environment, and prohibit the use of alcohol and addictive substances.