Changes right now
Speaking at the Annual Conference of the Club Director of the Northern Hospital of the Northern provinces on April 19, Deputy Minister of Health Tran Van Thuan emphasized: The health sector is facing a strong transformation in terms of thinking, organization and management, in order to meet the increasing expectations of the people about the quality of people's health care. The theme "Smart and Sustainable Hospital" was selected for this year's Conference, reflecting the urgent requirements of the process of transforming the whole industry.
In recent years, the hospital system has made many advances in governance, quality and application of technology. However, there are still many shortcomings: overload at the upper level, grassroots health care has not been promoted; shortage of professional human resources, especially in remote areas; financial and autonomous mechanisms still have many problems; difficulties in bidding and purchasing medical supplies cause a shortage of drugs; digital transformation is not synchronous, IT human resources are still thin and lacking skills; medical services are not uniform, and medical ethics in some places are taken lightly.
" Medical ethics is an issue that needs special attention. The medical industry has always had the tradition of "P hygiene is from the model", but there are still many signs of irresponsibility, putting personal interests above professional ethics, affecting the image of doctors" - Deputy Minister Tran Van Thuan said.
Smart hospitals are no longer a future concept but are becoming a new standard. In the context of patients increasingly expecting more from fast, transparent, personalized services, digital transformation and streamlined management are inevitable directions.
Modern management also helps reduce waste, increase transparency and improve service quality. Many major hospitals such as Bach Mai, Cho Ray, 108 have taken the lead in applying electronic medical records, improving processes and promoting professional ethics.
Associate Professor, Dr. Dao Xuan Co - Director of Bach Mai Hospital - shared: The hospital has completely applied electronic medical records since November 2024; deployed the "Bach Mai Care" application to help patients proactively look up information and medical examination history; implemented a streamlined management plan, standardized procedures, and optimized costs; cooperated with many partners to develop a green, environmentally friendly hospital model.
According to him, digital transformation brings 4 major benefits: (1) Improving the quality of medical examination and treatment thanks to electronic medical records; (2) Optimizing processes, saving nearly 80 billion VND per year when removing documents; (3) Improving patient experience through online services; (4) Promoting research and application of artificial intelligence, such as AI systems for lung cancer diagnosis from CT images and pathogenesis developed by hospitals.
Digital transformation is becoming an important lever to improve operational efficiency and the quality of medical services.
Towards a fair and humane healthcare
Building a smart and sustainable hospital not only to increase internal efficiency but also to narrow the medical gap between regions, towards a nationwide, personalized and humane health system.
In the future, the hospital will not only be a place for treatment, but also a place for prediction, proactive care and connection with the community. The combination of modern technology and humanistic governance thinking will be the key to the sustainable development of Vietnam's healthcare industry.
