That is a challenge to public health, labor productivity, population quality and sustainable development of each country.
We cannot just wait for patients to come to the hospital for treatment
Dr. Nguyen Trong Khoa, Deputy Director of the Department of Medical Examination and Treatment Management - Ministry of Health, said: Non-communicable diseases currently account for about 80% of total deaths; more than a quarter of adults aged 18 to 69 have high blood pressure; the number of people with diabetes has reached nearly 5 million people, equivalent to more than 7% of the adult population.
Behind those numbers are the risk of stroke, heart failure, kidney failure, stroke, disability and premature death, many cases can be completely prevented, detected early, managed well and treated more effectively.
Therefore, we cannot just wait for patients to come to the hospital for treatment. The health system must move forward one step, from late treatment to early detection; from handling each episode of disease to continuous management; from hospital care to connecting with grassroots health care, community and each citizen" - Dr. Khoa said.
The major orientation of the health sector today is to strongly shift from treatment to disease prevention, from fragmented care to comprehensive, continuous care, putting people at the center.
In the spirit of Resolution No. 72 of the Politburo, non-communicable disease management must become an important component of primary health care, grassroots health care, electronic health records and data-driven health system management.
Strengthening public-private partnership in non-communicable disease management
According to Dr. Khoa, in the plan "Strengthening the management of non-communicable diseases in Vietnam" for the period 2026 – 2028, the Department of Medical Examination and Treatment Management will coordinate with units directly under the Ministry of Health and associations to implement activities closely following 4 key objectives:
Develop, update and standardize professional guidelines on diagnosis and treatment, clinical procedures, and quality criteria to help improve the effectiveness of treatment and disease management;
Strengthen the capacity of medical examination and treatment for doctors, management staff and policy makers in non-communicable disease management;
Updating documents regulating the organization of examination and emergency treatment of stroke and the implementation of emergency and treatment solutions for stroke;
Raising community awareness about CKM, early detection and timely treatment of stroke.
Especially for stroke, it has been prioritized in the National Target Program on Healthcare, Population and Development for the period 2026 – 2035.
In that context, the Department of Medical Examination and Treatment Management, Ministry of Health and Boehringer Ingelheim Vietnam Co., Ltd. signed a Memorandum of Understanding on the Cooperation Program "Strengthening the management of non-communicable diseases in Vietnam in the period 2026-2028".
Speaking at the signing ceremony on May 11, Prof. Dr. Tran Van Thuan, Deputy Minister of Health emphasized: "Effectively controlling non-communicable diseases is one of the top priorities of the Vietnamese health sector in the current period.
Strengthening public-private partnerships with reputable international partners will contribute to supporting the effective implementation of the goals of the National Strategy for Prevention and Control of Non-Communist Diseases, towards a sustainable healthcare system, with patients at the center.
I especially welcome the key contents of the program. If implemented seriously, methodically and with measurable results, the program can contribute to creating substantive changes, such as doctors being updated with knowledge, hospitals being standardized with procedures, treatment networks being better connected, people having access to more accurate information, and most importantly, patients having more opportunities to receive timely, safe, and effective treatment" - Deputy Minister of Health emphasized.
From January 2025 to now, more than 240,000 patients in Vietnam living with cardiovascular - kidney - metabolic diseases, stroke and interstitial lung disease have been treated with advanced solutions developed by Boehringer Ingelheim.
Vietnam is also being recognized as the leading country in stroke care in Southeast Asia, with more than 130 hospitals and centers certified by the World Stroke Organization to meet the "Stroke Ready" standard.
