Sending a question to the Ministry of Health, reader P.T said: "Other specialist doctors have the scope of practice in medical examination and treatment prescribed in Appendices V and IX of Circular No. 32/2023/TT-BYT according to the specialty issued with this Circular.
However, the list of medical examination and treatment techniques does not include family medicine specialties. Request the competent authority to have documents or appendices guiding the work of medical examination and treatment in family medicine, facilitating medical examination and treatment for people and health insurance settlement".
Regarding this issue, the Ministry of Health responded as follows:
For doctors who are granted a practice certificate and have a scope of professional activities of "examination and treatment according to the principle of family medicine", according to the provisions of Article 3 of Circular No. 21/2019/TT-BYT dated August 21, 2019 of the Minister of Health guiding the pilot program on family medicine activities:
"Article 3. The duty of a family doctor
Family doctors perform the tasks specified in Clause 2, Article 2 of this Circular according to the assignment of the person in charge of the family medicine facility".
Thus, according to the provisions of Circular No. 21/2019/TT-BYT, the scope of practice of family medicine is as follows:
"d) Medical examination and treatment;
- Pre-assistance, emergency;
- screening and early detection of diseases, especially epidemics;
- Chronic diseases, non-communicable diseases;
- Home care, medical examination and treatment for patients according to the list prescribed in the Appendix issued with this Circular;
- Performing technical services in:
+ Basic health service packages specified in the Circular of the Minister of Health;
+ List of technical routes 3 and 4 as prescribed in the Circular of the Minister of Health on technical expertise classification, technical list;
+ Other professional techniques, on higher routes when meeting the prescribed conditions.
The maximum scope of professional activities of family medicine and family doctor facilities includes the services and techniques specified in this point. Based on the actual facilities, equipment, and human resources (prosecution certificate, professional diploma, family medicine training certificate of practitioners) of each family medicine facility, the Ministry of Health and the Department of Health determine the scope of professional activities, appropriate technical categories for each family medicine facility, and the scope of professional activities of family doctors under their management authority".
