Ho Chi Minh City views unlicensed medical examination and treatment as a healthcare challenge in 2024.

Detecting and preventing unlicensed medical examinations and treatments is considered one of the biggest challenges this year by the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Health , especially given that unlicensed facilities have been fined every week recently.

On January 3rd, the Director of the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Health, Tang Chi Thuong, stated that based on practical experiences in 2023, the city needs more practical solutions to proactively detect and prevent unlicensed medical examination and treatment activities and violations related to medical advertising.

In recent months, the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Health Inspectorate has been fining numerous unlicensed medical facilities and those violating medical advertising regulations every week, a number many times higher than before and compared to other provinces and cities.

In particular, with the development of social media, many people have created websites, accounts, pages, and groups on social media platforms (Facebook, Zalo, TikTok, YouTube, etc.) to advertise and promote medical examination and treatment services, and to buy and sell medicines and medical equipment, causing many negative consequences for users' health.

Some people post videos in the form of sharing medical experiences and knowledge, using them to advertise unlicensed medical services. There are cases of people impersonating doctors to advertise medical services, posting content and images that challenge regulatory authorities. Many also use images and reviews from influential online personalities, famous artists, and advertising information from newspapers to attract and build trust among the public.

According to Mr. Thuong, in addition to strictly handling violations, the health sector needs to have solutions to prevent and thoroughly address this situation in the future. Furthermore, people should be cautious when choosing medical examination and treatment services. When encountering advertisements on social media, they should not immediately believe them but carefully verify the information through various channels, especially the Department's Medical Examination and Treatment Information Portal, to find out about the clinic's and doctor's licenses, thus avoiding life-threatening complications.

When discovering or suspecting that a medical facility is operating illegally or showing signs of violations, people can call the hotline at 0989.401.155, or report through the "Online Healthcare" application so that the Department's Inspectorate can promptly detect and strictly handle the violations.

Patients crowd together waiting for medical examinations and treatment at a hospital in Ho Chi Minh City. Photo: Quynh Tran.

In 2024, Ho Chi Minh City continues to pursue important healthcare goals. The city has planned to develop a high-tech health check-up and disease screening center, aiming to become a regional healthcare hub. Therefore, solutions are needed to help public hospitals achieve sustainable autonomy, enhance the management capacity of hospital directors, and establish data linkages for managing healthcare practices between the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Health and provinces in the Southeast and Mekong Delta regions.

The Department will develop specific solutions to ensure the effective operation of the three gateway hospitals, coordinate with relevant departments to guarantee the disbursement of healthcare projects, and strengthen healthcare information technology infrastructure towards digital transformation.

The health sector must also prepare resources to expand centralized drug procurement, ensuring sufficient drug supply for primary healthcare facilities, and effectively implement the Ho Chi Minh City Pharmaceutical Industry Development Project as soon as it is approved. In addition, Ho Chi Minh City should implement solutions to attract and form an effective network of community health collaborators, mobilizing resources to manage the health of people in high-risk groups (pregnant women, newborns, children under 6 years old, adolescents, and the elderly).

According to the Department of Health, the aforementioned goals also present a major challenge for the city in the new year.

Le Phuong

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