Breakthroughs in Lao Cai healthcare

Well-maintained health infrastructure

Comrade Hoang Quoc Huong, Provincial Party Committee member, Director of Lao Cai Department of Health, said that one of the outstanding achievements is that despite being in such a difficult mountainous area, the issue of organizational structure, the key factor, has always been maintained stable and developed. Lao Cai Department of Health has just continued to arrange the functional departments of the Department of Health, branches in a streamlined, efficient and effective direction; receiving a number of functions and tasks of child protection, prevention of social evils after the dissolution of the Department of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs.

Developing provincial hospitals in a specialized direction, transferring district health centers and health stations to the People's Committees at the district level for management... The staff is continuously strengthened and trained to improve. The total number of health workers in the province to date is 5,443 people, including 1,157 doctors, reaching 14.5 doctors/10,000 people; 320 university pharmacists, reaching 3.9 pharmacists/10,000 people. The total number of village and hamlet health workers is 1,092/1,215 (reaching 90.37%), village and hamlet midwives is 144... Strongly implementing decentralization and delegation of authority to the grassroots health sector to increase initiative in performing tasks.

Ethnic people go to see a doctor at Muong Khuong District General Hospital (Lao Cai).

In particular, the infrastructure for the Lao Cai health sector continues to receive investment attention. In the 2020-2025 period, the Provincial People's Committee invested in upgrading the Provincial General Hospital in phase II with a scale of 9 floors, floor area of ​​up to 29,630m2. At the same time, 7 new general hospitals were built in Muong Khuong, Bat Xat, Bac Ha, Bao Yen, Bao Thang, Van Ban, and Simacai districts. 5 new medical centers were built in Bat Xat, Bac Ha, Bao Yen, Van Ban, and Bao Thang districts, with a scale of 3 floors, floor area from 1,700 to 1,800m2... The total investment cost for the facilities in the 2020-2025 period is more than 2,100 billion VND.

At the same time, medical equipment continues to be invested and modernized, the provincial budget for purchasing in the period of 2020-2025 is more than 1,400 billion VND. Basic hospitals have equipment to carry out tasks according to the division. Some modern equipment has been installed such as magnetic resonance imaging system, CT scan, artificial heart-lung, high pressure oxygen... digital angiography (DSA), equipment system for artificial insemination (IVF), radiotherapy system... 7/9 district hospitals have a 16-row 32-slice CT scan system; Seven hospitals have hemodialysis and many other equipment such as X-ray machines, ultrasound, endoscopy, testing machines, surgical systems... Basic commune health stations have enough list according to Circular No. 28/2020/TT-BYT dated 31/21/2020 of the Ministry of Health.

Quality of medical examination and treatment is improved

Lao Cai Provincial General Hospital is a grade 1 specialized hospital, a hospital that performs the "regional" function of the Northern Midlands and Mountains region (Decision No. 201/QD-TTg dated February 27, 2024 of the Prime Minister). Effectively implement medical cooperation programs with 12 central hospitals, including 4 hospitals directly signed cooperation programs by the Provincial People's Committee (Bach Mai Hospital, Children's Hospital, 108 Central Military Hospital, Hanoi Lung Hospital), thereby enhancing technology transfer, remote medical examination and treatment, especially rotating and sending highly qualified experts and doctors to examine and treat people.

Modern multi-row CT Scanner system at Lao Cai Provincial General Hospital.

Dr. Pham Van Thinh, Director of Lao Cai Provincial General Hospital, said: In recent years, professional indicators have all met and exceeded the set plan, reflecting the increasingly improved efficiency of operations and quality of medical examination and treatment. Specifically: In the following years, the results of implementing the plan have exceeded those of the previous year, such as: In 2024, the total number of medical examinations reached 161,807, an increase of 6.8% compared to 2023 and exceeding the annual plan by 106.8%. The number of inpatients reached 36,530, an increase of 5.2%. The bed occupancy rate reached 90.5%, an increase of 5.14%. Many technical services were performed with 344,541 procedures, an increase of 12.4%. MRI increased by 32%, CT Scanner increased by 9.4%.

Currently, the hospital has approved 12,939 technical services, reaching 82% of the total number of techniques according to the classification of the Ministry of Health, including 4,121 type I and special techniques. The hospital has mastered many specialized and modern techniques such as: Digestive cancer surgery (endoscopic gastrectomy, liver resection, lung resection, ...) ...

In particular, kidney transplantation techniques are being deployed and gradually mastered, marking an important step forward in intensive treatment at the provincial level. At the end of 2024, with the support of the Central level, Lao Cai Provincial General Hospital successfully performed the first organ transplant for a patient with end-stage renal failure, opening up new steps, creating a premise for the development of high-quality healthcare in the province. On May 14, 2025, the Ministry of Health recognized Lao Cai Provincial General Hospital as qualified to perform the technique of removing and transplanting kidneys from living donors and from brain-dead donors.

Another unit, Lao Cai Traditional Medicine Hospital, has also made great strides in the quality of medical examination and treatment in the area. According to Dr. CK1 Mai Xuan Trung, Director of the unit, in recent times Lao Cai has paid attention to and focused on investing in upgrading the Provincial Traditional Medicine Hospital, investing in equipment, and increasing the number of beds for the traditional medicine department at provincial and district general hospitals. In addition to investing in modern equipment, medical facilities also create favorable conditions for doctors and physicians to study to improve their expertise, and apply knowledge of Eastern and Western medicine fluently in medical examination and treatment.

Along with that, Lao Cai Traditional Medicine Hospital is qualified to process and prepare traditional medicines in traditional dosage forms such as: medicinal extracts, hard pills, soft pills, medicinal powders, medicinal teas, medicinal tinctures, medicinal wines... according to current regulations of the Ministry of Health. These efforts aim to meet the needs of examination and treatment using traditional medicine, as well as combine traditional medicine with modern medicine to improve treatment effectiveness for the people. Many patients with cerebrovascular accidents, high blood pressure, sciatica, musculoskeletal diseases (osteoarthritis, joint pain, herniated discs)... when coming here for treatment have brought positive results.

Doctor Vu Thi Nguyet - Director of Lao Cai Provincial Endocrinology Hospital said that it is a grade II provincial specialized hospital with 130 beds. Every month, the hospital receives about 5,000 patients for examination and 300 inpatients with endocrine, respiratory, cardiovascular or musculoskeletal diseases...

Accordingly, in the period from 2020-2025, Lao Cai Provincial Endocrinology Hospital has made great strides in this field in the province, contributing to significantly reducing the rate of patients having to be transferred to other hospitals, saving treatment costs for patients and contributing to reducing the load on central hospitals...

People see a doctor at Lao Cai Endocrinology Hospital.

Striving to become a "regional medical center"

Comrade Hoang Quoc Huong, Director of Lao Cai Department of Health, said: Lao Cai provincial leaders always pay attention to, direct, and invest in developing medical facilities and equipment; provincial departments, branches, sectors, Party committees, and authorities at all levels have closely coordinated with the health sector in all areas of operation. The health system operates stably and effectively, the staff continues to be trained to improve; the service attitude of health workers is increasingly better, overcoming difficulties and performing assigned tasks. Many major programs and policies of the State on socio-economic development have been implemented; the Provincial People's Council has issued policies to support health-population work, policies to attract, treat, and support human resource training for the period 2021-2025.

Along with that, the Ministry of Health, Departments, Bureaus, and Central Hospitals are also very interested in providing professional support and technical transfer to Lao Cai provincial hospitals through cooperation programs, medical support, and equipment support from project sources.

However, the Lao Cai health sector still faces many difficulties: Although the physical facilities have received great attention, there are still some small-scale facilities that have difficulty operating; Some health stations and clinics built a long time ago (2007-2008) have degraded and need to be rebuilt or upgraded. Medical equipment is still lacking compared to the norm, some large provincial equipment (Spect machines, CT scanners, MRI machines...) were purchased a long time ago, operate unstably, and need major repairs.

There is a shortage of staff, the grassroots health sector lacks specialized staff, and the commune level lacks doctors. Service prices at hospitals are not calculated correctly and sufficiently; hospital revenues are low, affecting financial activities and hospital autonomy...

In order for Lao Cai's health sector to develop rapidly, strongly and sustainably, worthy of being a "regional health center", it is necessary to implement a series of the following main groups of solutions: Strengthening the dissemination and raising awareness of civil servants and public employees of the Party and Government's policies on restructuring and streamlining the apparatus, implementing the 2-level local government model. Advising the Provincial Party Committee and the Provincial People's Committee on restructuring and transferring cadres to the province's new administrative center; coordinating the restructuring of the apparatus and medical staff at the commune level.

Modern and airy patient reception area at Lao Cai Provincial General Hospital.

Continue to advise Lao Cai provincial leaders on arranging facilities in the direction of: Arranging effective use of facilities at provincial and district levels, ensuring efficiency and avoiding waste; continue to advise on key projects and facilities at commune levels; continue to direct the review of equipment and vehicles, and propose funding for procurement and supplementation.

Strengthen training to improve the quality of medical staff; provide specialized training, postgraduate training, and training of doctors, with priority given to on-the-job training; provide training to improve professional capacity combined with training in political theory and state management of health.

Strengthen prevention work; strictly manage dangerous infectious diseases, promptly detect and handle epidemics, and prevent serious developments; Improve the quality of medical examination and treatment, strengthen medical cooperation with upper-level hospitals; develop grassroots services, and improve the quality of primary health care.

Source: https://nhandan.vn/nhung-buoc-dot-pha-cua-y-te-lao-cai-post880934.html