Associate Professor Dao Xuan Co, Director of Bach Mai Hospital, in Hanoi on February 13 told VietNamNet that after nearly two years of implementing the Government’s Resolution No30 dated March 4, 2023, the solutions to ensure medications and medical equipment for the hospital have begun to rebound.

The government and MOH’s policies have eliminated difficulties for medical facilities. Bach Mai Hospital received financial support of VND 1 trillion to purchase equipment and repair outdated infrastructure and buildings.

In 2024, BachMai digitized the entire medical examination and treatment process, using electronic medical records and no paper. Digitalizing records and imaging help the hospital save hundreds of billions each year.

Digital transformation has made public earnings and spending transparent. This allows them to rigorously follow anti-corruption solutions in medicine and medical equipment procurement, tightly manage revenue, prevent losses, and save on expenditures (buying products at correct prices). The hospital has gradually stabilized financially.

Three to four years ago, the hospital faced many doctor resignations as medical workers’ incomes decreased. Many workers had to take extra jobs. Some of them sold votive papers and goods online to get extra income. However, workers’ incomes have gradually improved. 

The 2025 Tet bonus was twice as much as the previous year, which allowed hospital staff to concentrate on their professional duties.

“The hospital has retained excellent doctors, and we have the right to recruit outstanding resident doctors,” Co said.

Bach Mai Hospital has set two goals related directly to patient rights, striving for a treatment process meeting standards set by countries with developed healthcare systems.

Patients are now encouraged to set up plans to see doctors for medical examinations and actively schedule appointments beforehand. Appointments can be made via phone, website or mobile app, and they can choose the doctors for medical services.

“Currently, with modern machinery and technology, people can come for medical checks at any time. Nearly all tests, clinical imaging, X-rays, ultrasounds, endoscopies, etc., can be conducted and deliver accurate results," Co said.

If patients want to be examined by foreign experts, consultations can be implemented at the hospital. The service meets the needs of high-income patients who don’t want to go abroad for medical examination and want to be cared for by relatives in Vietnam. Patients will not meet obstacles because of language differences. Also, this can save financial resources.

To achieve healthcare quality similar to developed countries, the hospital has signed cooperation with many hospitals and universities around the world. It has invited foreign experts to work or consult directly with major hospitals online.

The hospital trains its workforce with the motto “turning others’ excellence into our own” through adopting and learning the most advanced techniques of global medicine.

In 2025, Bach Mai will continue sending many doctors to the US, France, Japan, Australia and South Korea and European countries to learn new techniques in organ transplantation, robotic surgery, stem cell therapy, gene therapy, and AI application. This allows Vietnamese people to benefit from global medical advancements with no need to seek treatment abroad.

Associate Professor Vu Van Giap, Deputy Director of Bach Mai Hospital, said the hospital began its ambitious dream of comprehensive digital transformation on a very outdated platform, and therefore, it had to "rise from the bottom".

The hospital identified three key pillars: information technology manpower, server infrastructure, and interconnectivity.

With guidance from MOH and the Ministry of Information and Communications (MIC), the hospital has adopted open source software, and implemented it for free at healthcare facilities.

Only two weeks after implementation, Bach Mai stopped using paper medical records and shifted to electronic records.

Deputy Prime Minister Le Thanh Long in mid-December 2024 signed Decision No 1576, approving the plan to restructure healthcare network in 2021-2030, with a vision towards 2050.

Under the decision, six hospitals received priority to be upgraded to meet international standards, namely Bach Mai, Viet Duc Friendship Hospital, Hue Central Hospital, Cho Ray Hospital, Central Military Hospital 108 and Military Hospital 175.

Of these, five hospitals are special-class, including Bach Mai, Viet Duc Friendship Hospital, Hue Central Hospital, Cho Ray Hospital (all belong to MOH) and Central Military Hospital 108 (belongs to the Ministry of National Defence).

Phuong Thuy