Hospital reacts to brand misuse.

Thanh Vu General Hospital in Bac Lieu - where Vietnam Refraction Joint Stock Company sends people for medical examinations - Photo: CHI QUOC

On June 19th, Ms. Dang Ngoc The, director of Thanh Vu Medic General Hospital in Bac Lieu, stated that after receiving complaints from the public, the hospital conducted an investigation, terminated its contract with Vietnam Refraction Joint Stock Company, and notified the Bac Lieu Provincial Department of Health and the police, affirming that the hospital was not involved in exploiting medical examination and treatment services to sell counterfeit medicines and functional foods to the public.

This misleads people into thinking that the hospital sells medicine from its van.

According to Ms. Ngoc The, Thanh Vu Medic Bac Lieu General Hospital has signed a contract with Vietnam Refraction Joint Stock Company for the provision of periodic health check-up services for customers, with the following content: the first phase will include physical and eye examinations, and the second phase will include screening for breast cancer markers (for women) and prostate cancer screening (for men).

This medical examination will be conducted in three locations: Ca Mau (examination at the Thanh Vu Medic General Hospital Bac Lieu branch in Ca Mau), Bac Lieu, and Soc Trang, where examinations will be conducted at the two facilities of Thanh Vu Medic General Hospital Bac Lieu (referred to as Thanh Vu Hospital) in Bac Lieu province.

"The contract with the hospital was simply for providing health check-ups for customers. However, Vietnam Refraction Joint Stock Company informed the public that it was cooperating with Thanh Vu Hospital to provide free eye examinations, then conducted transactions with their customers through the sale of medicines and dietary supplements. This is a case of exploiting the hospital's brand to conduct drug sales according to their own agenda."

Recognizing this as brand misuse and a deceptive practice, the hospital sent a notice terminating the contract with Vietnam Refraction Joint Stock Company and demanded that the company explain its claim of "collaborating with Thanh Vu Hospital to provide free examinations." If they do not respond or provide an explanation, the hospital will take legal action.

"The hospital also sent a document to the Bac Lieu Provincial Department of Health and the Police Station of Ward 7 (Bac Lieu City) - where the Vietnam Refraction Joint Stock Company is about to open - to gather information," Ms. The said.

Is there any deception involved in the sale of counterfeit medicine for profit?

According to Ms. The, Thanh Vu Hospital is aware of cases where people were forced to buy medicine and dietary supplements, and the hospital has explained the situation to them. However, the problem is that the hospital does not yet know how many cases have been involved in this, so it cannot explain everything to everyone.

Providing further information to reporters, Mr. Lam Quoc Na - deputy director of Thanh Vu Hospital - said that the hospital has received information about forcing customers to buy medicines and dietary supplements as mentioned above, mainly from remote communes of Nga Nam town (Soc Trang province).

Specifically, on average, one vehicle carries 60 people to the hospital each day for eye examinations, and the Vietnam Refraction Joint Stock Company guides them through the process, transporting them home after the examination.

However, as the vehicle traveled back, these people were harassed and forced to buy red pine oil. On the bus, they received an unsigned letter stating that they were collaborating with Thanh Vu Hospital to provide free eye examinations, and then selling red pine oil. Those who refused to buy were driven around aimlessly.

In response to this incident, Vietnam Refraction Joint Stock Company sent a letter to Thanh Vu Hospital. According to the letter, the company specializes in distributing pharmaceuticals to pharmacies and drugstores nationwide. To celebrate the opening of its business location in Bac Lieu, the company offered customers a free health check-up package at Thanh Vu Hospital.

After the inspection, the company invited customers to visit the booth at the business location, and those interested in purchasing goods could register.

In the same document, Vietnam Refraction Joint Stock Company accepted Thanh Vu Hospital's decision to terminate the contract; however, the company disagreed with the hospital's conclusion that the company had used the hospital's image and brand for business gain.

Report the incident widely so that the public is aware.

Mr. Lam Quoc Na, deputy director of Thanh Vu Hospital, said that in some cases where people posted on social media about being forced to buy medicine during medical examinations as mentioned above, the Vietnam Refraction Joint Stock Company contacted them to return the money.

The Thanh Vu General Hospital has verified and recorded the incidents reported by customers. In addition to submitting complaints to the Department of Health and the police, the hospital has also broadcast announcements on local television stations in Soc Trang and Bac Lieu provinces to inform the public about the incident.

Source: https://tuoitre.vn/benh-vien-phan-ung-vi-bi-loi-dung-thuong-hieu-20240624081424961.htm