Reorganize the medical examination and treatment network in a multi-level direction
After expanding boundaries and strengthening regional linkages, the Ho Chi Minh City health sector currently serves more than 14 million people. This pressure requires the city to shift from a model focused on end-line hospitals to a multi-layered, interconnected medical examination and treatment system and reasonable resource allocation.
According to Assoc. Prof. Dr. Tang Chi Thuong - Director of Ho Chi Minh City Department of Health, the new model identifies grassroots healthcare as the primary health care level, general hospitals are responsible for treating most common diseases, while specialized hospitals focus on developing high technology and key specialties.
In parallel with improving the capacity of the final line, the city also promotes the "nuclear hospital - satellite" model, technology transfer and professional support so that people can access medical services right in the locality" - Assoc. Prof. Dr. Tang Chi Thuong informed.
One of the specific steps is that Gia Dinh People's Hospital comprehensively supports the Phu My Regional Medical Center, orienting its development into the hospital's second facility in the future. This model helps people in the Southeast gateway area access high-quality medical services without having to move to the city center.
Similarly, Vung Tau General Hospital supports Long Dat Regional Medical Center, and Ba Ria General Hospital supports Chau Duc Regional Medical Center, gradually improving the capacity of grassroots medical examination and treatment.
In the south of the city, Can Gio - an area that once faced many difficulties in accessing medical services - is also being prioritized for investment. In 2026, in addition to deploying the 2nd facility of Tu Du Hospital, the city will also organize universal health check-up programs, contributing to narrowing the gap in healthcare between the central and suburban areas.
A series of key hospital projects launched
In addition to consolidating the grassroots health network, Ho Chi Minh City is promoting investment in health infrastructure on an unprecedented scale. Recently, the Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee approved the new construction project of Block B of Nguyen Trai Hospital with a total investment of more than 1,167 billion VND. The project includes 1 basement and 15 above-ground floors, expected to be implemented in the 2027-2030 period, contributing to improving the medical examination and treatment capacity for the central area.
For the Ho Chi Minh City Hospital for Tropical Diseases, the project to build a medical examination block after many years of waiting has also been adjusted to increase the total investment from 284 billion VND to nearly 794 billion VND. The scale of the project has been expanded to 2 basements and 10 above-ground floors, meeting the development requirements of infectious diseases in the new context.
According to the public investment portfolio for the period 2026-2030, Ho Chi Minh City is expected to spend more than 66,000 billion VND on the health sector - the largest investment ever. Among the 100 new investment projects, there are 8 key hospitals, creating a foundation for the development of modern medical examination and treatment systems.
Along with new projects, many gateway health centers are gradually forming. Hoc Mon Regional General Hospital has been put into operation, creating the western health pole; Thu Duc Regional General Hospital is expected to operate in 2026 and become the eastern health center; while Tan Kien Medical Cluster is gradually developing into the western gateway health center.
The synchronous investment in specialized hospitals, improving grassroots health capacity and developing a network of satellite hospitals shows that Ho Chi Minh City is shifting from a centralized development model to a multi-polar, regional linkage model.
This is not only a solution to reduce the burden on end-line hospitals, but also lays the foundation for the formation of a multi-layered Southeast healthcare network, helping people access high-quality services right near their homes and better meet healthcare needs in the future.
