State management of healthcare in Vietnam

What is medical examination and treatment?

Pursuant to the Law on Medical Examination and Treatment 2023:

- Medical examination is a medical practitioner’s using professional knowledge, methods and techniques to assess a patient's health status, risks and care needs.

- Medical treatment is a medical practitioner’s using professional knowledge, methods and techniques to solve a health condition, prevent the occurrence and progression of a disease, or meet a patient's health care needs according to medical examination results.

Principles of provision of medical services in Vietnam include:

+ Respect, protect, and treat patients equally, and stop stigma or discrimination towards patients.

+ Give priority to have access to medical services to patients in a state of emergency; children aged under 6 years; pregnant women; people with extremely severe disabilities; people with severe disabilities; people aged 75 years or older; people rendering meritorious services to the revolution, depending on the particular characteristics of each medical establishment.

+ Respect, cooperate with and protect practitioners and other persons on duty at medical establishments.

+ Promptly implement and comply with regulations on professional and technical expertise in healthcare.

+ Comply with the code of professional ethics in the practice of medicine approved by the Minister of Health.

State management of healthcare in Vietnam (Internet image)

State management of healthcare in Vietnam

Pursuant to Article 5 of the Law on Medical Examination and Treatment 2023, regulations on state management policies on medical examination and treatment are as follows:

(1) Objectives of the State management of healthcare, including:

- Formulate, promulgate and organize the implementation of legal documents on healthcare; adopt a system of technical standards and regulations on healthcare;

- Develop, adopt and implement healthcare strategies, policies, programs, projects and plans;

- Formulate, adopt and implement the planning scheme on development of the system of medical establishments in accordance with law on planning;

- Set forth regulatory provisions regarding professional and technical expertise, criteria, standards and regulations in healthcare;

- Organize, design and manage the system of medical establishments; assess the quality of medical establishments;

- Confer, suspend and revoke practising licenses of practitioners; operating licenses of medical establishments;

- Provide training courses designed to develop human resources needed for delivery of medical services; provide education about, propagate and disseminate knowledge and laws on medical examination and treatment; offer guidance on application of the policy for rotation of practitioners;

- Conduct scientific and technological researches; develop science and technology; transfer technologies in healthcare;

- Design, run and administer the healthcare management information system;

- Carry out the State management of prices of medical services in accordance with this Law and other legislation on prices;

- Seek international cooperation in the health industry;

- Inspect and handle complaints or accusations, and sanction any violation arising in healthcare.

(2) Responsibilities for the State management of healthcare shall be subject to the following regulations:

- The Government shall be responsible for the uniform state management of healthcare;

- The Ministry of Health shall be held accountable to the Government for its state management of healthcare;

- The Ministry of National Defense and the Ministry of Public Security shall, within the range of their tasks and powers, perform the state management of healthcare, and take responsibility for organizing the healthcare systems and services under their jurisdiction pursuant to the Law on Medical Examination and Treatment 2023;

- Ministries and Ministry-level agencies shall, within the ambit of their duties and powers, have the burden of cooperating with the Ministry of Health in performing the task of State management of healthcare;

- People’s Committees at all levels shall perform the state management of healthcare in areas falling within their relevant remit.

Mai Thanh Loi

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