DECISION

APPROVING THE VIETNAM NATIONAL STRATEGY ON PREVENTIVE MEDICINE TO 2010 AND ORIENTATIONS TOWARDS 2020

THE PRIME MINISTER

Pursuant to the December 25, 2001 Law on Organization of the Government;
Pursuant to the June 30, 1989 Law on Protection of the People's Health;
Pursuant to the Government's Decree No. 49/2003/ND-CP of May 15, 2003, defining the functions, tasks, powers and organizational structure of the Ministry of Health;
At the proposal of the Minister of Health,

DECIDES:

Article 1.- To approve the Vietnam national strategy on preventive medicine to 2010 and orientations towards 2020 with the following principal contents:

1. Viewpoints:

a/ Active and proactive preventive medicine is the central task to ensure equity and efficiency in the cause of protection, care and improvement of the people's health.

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c/ The State shall assure main financial sources for preventive medicine in order to promote the country's sustainable development and bring about socio-economic benefits.

d/ Preventive medicine is the responsibility of administrations at all levels, of ministries, branches, mass organizations, political organizations, socio-political organizations and every citizen. To boost the socialization of preventive medicine with the healthcare sector playing the key role in professional and technical aspects.

e/ To enhance and expand international cooperation on preventive medicine.

2. Objectives of the Vietnam national strategy on preventive medicine to 2010

a/ General objectives

To reduce risk factors affecting community health; to early detect and promptly control epidemics, preventing the widespread occurrence of epidemics; to reduce the morbidity and mortality rates of diseases; to contribute to improving physical and mental strengths, increasing life expectancy, improving the quality of life and our race.

b/ Specific objectives

- To change awareness and raise the sense of responsibility for disease prevention and health protection of Party Committees and administrations at all levels, mass organizations, community and every citizen.

- To limit and proceed to eliminating all risk factors related to contagious diseases.

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- To take the initiative in coping with and controlling new dangerous epidemics; to keep the HIV/AIDS prevalence rate at under 0.3% of the population and gradually reduce the number of newly infected persons among the population.

- To limit and proceed to controlling risk factors related to nutrition, health, environment, school diseases, occupational diseases, injuries, non-contagious diseases and diseases caused by unhealthful behaviors or lifestyles.

3. Orientations towards 2020

a/ To continue carrying out activities in order to control and eliminate, then proceed to eradicating current contagious diseases which may cause epidemics such as digestive diseases (cholera, dysentery, typhoid, helminthiasis ...); insect-borne diseases (petechial fever, malaria, Japanese encephalitis...); and rabies. At the same time, to apply active measures to effectively prevent dangerous epidemics and newly arising diseases (HIV/AIDS, SARS, avian influenza (H5N1)...); to get ready and take the initiative in coping with the threat of biological and chemical terrorism.

b/ To firmly maintain the outcomes of the elimination of poliomyelitis and the eradication of neonatal tetanus. To further promote activities of the expanded vaccination program in order to eradicate and eliminate common contagious childhood diseases such as measles, diphtheria, whooping cough, Japanese encephalitis, viral hepatitis... while expanding the use of vaccines to prevent other diseases.

c/ To take the initiative in preventing and combating non-contagious diseases and diseases related to the environment, occupations, school, nutrition, harmful lifestyles, accidents and injuries.

d/ To strengthen the preventive medicine network towards modernization. To set up and consolidate provincial and district preventive medicine centers.

4. Solutions

a/ Group of policy and social solutions

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- To raise the sense of responsibility of administrations at all levels in the direction, urging, monitoring and inspection of preventive medicine activities; to organize and encourage the active and proactive participation of mass organizations, social organizations and community in this work.

- To formulate, amend and supplement in order to complete a system of legal documents and regulations on preventive medicine. To draft a law on prevention and combat of contagious diseases for submission to the National Assembly. To adopt a particular preferential treatment regime for preventive medicine personnel such as allowances for epidemic prevention and combat, allowances for working in a hazardous environment and in deep-lying or remote areas; to adopt policies on reward, commendation and honoring of people with outstanding achievements, provide timely supports for people who suffer from diseases or disabilities or for families of those who die while participating in the prevention and combat of dangerous diseases or in the overcoming of consequences of natural calamities or disasters.

- To bring into play the inter-branch coordination and direction role of the Healthcare Steering Boards under the People's Committees at all levels in the domain of preventive medicine. To raise the effectiveness of inter-branch coordination in order to involve all resources and social strata in the disease prevention and care for the people's health.

- To effectively implement the program on cooperation between civil and military health services in the domain of preventive medicine in mountainous, deep-lying, remote, border areas and islands.

- To launch a mass movement of physical training and sport activities to improve the people's physical and mental health. To integrate preventive medicine activities to care for and protect the people's health in the movement "The entire population unites to build a cultured lifestyle."

- To accelerate communication and education work so as to raise public awareness about the importance and benefits of preventive medicine. To foster knowledge and skills in the people, families and community so that they can proactively prevent and combat diseases and improve their health, prevent and combat lifestyle-related diseases, and change their behaviors in order to build a healthy lifestyle in the community. To encourage people not to smoke, reduce the number of smokers, especially among adolescents and children.

b/ Group of professional and technical solutions

- To invest in the development of modern sciences, techniques and technologies for preventive medicine. To upgrade research institutes in the preventive medicine system so as to properly satisfy the requirements of scientific research, training and application of new sciences and technologies. To establish a system of advanced and modern laboratories to meet the demand for region-based prevention of diseases. To attach importance to investment in grade-III and -IV laboratories for bio-safety test; laboratories for test of toxic substances and residues in foodstuff, in human bodies and the living environment; to invest in technologies for the production of vaccines and medical bio-products; to invest in modern equipment for molecular biological research in the domain of preventive medicine.

- To promote surveillance activities to early detect newly arising diseases and promptly stamp out epidemics. To apply information technology for strengthening the reporting and surveillance system and modernizing the system of management of statistical data, epidemic and disease forecasts. To prioritize research into risk factors to serve surveillance, forecast and intervention work for controlling and stamping out epidemics. To supply epidemic surveillance and early detection equipment to provincial and district preventive medicine centers.

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- To maintain regular anti-epidemic activities so as to reduce the morbidity and mortality rates of contagious diseases such as cholera, petechial fever, malaria, viral encephalitis and rabies. To eliminate at the district level blindness-causing trachoma; to reduce the prevalence of active trachoma and trachoma-related upper eyelid cicatricial entropion.

- To carry out child healthcare programs such as programs against malnutrition, diarrhea, acute respiratory infection, heart disease and helminthiasis; programs on adolescent and school healthcare. To conduct community-based activities of preventing and combating malnutrition and supplying vitamin A to reduce the under-five malnutrition rate. To continue the prevention and combat of goiter so as to settle iodine deficiency disorders. To reduce the rate of pregnant women suffering from anemia due to iron deficiency.

- To enhance activities for environmental and occupational health. To carry out activities of supervising the working environment, preventing and combating occupational diseases. To prioritize the supervision of, and the suggestion of measures to treat, polluting and harmful wastes such as hospital wastes, industrial wastes, plant protection chemicals, etc.

- To accelerate the operation of and consolidate the school healthcare network; to organize annual health checks-up for pupils. To reduce the prevalence of dental and mouth diseases, deformed spinal column and shortsightedness among pupils.

- To elaborate schemes for prevention and overcoming of consequences of natural calamities and disasters; prevention and control of accidents and injuries, especially traffic accidents, labor accidents and occupational diseases. To further promote the prevention and control of accidents and injuries.

- To carry out activities of cancer prevention and combat; to reduce impacts of hazardous environmental factors on human health.

c/ Group of solutions on organizational system, investment and international cooperation

- To perfect the organization and raise the state management capacity and technical professional capacity of the preventive medicine system at the central and local levels. To establish and complete a system for surveillance and early warning of epidemics and effectively apply information technology to the management and surveillance of epidemics and diseases.

- To elaborate plannings and plans on and prioritize the training of preventive medicine physicians at medical universities while attaching importance to professional training and retraining of preventive medicine personnel so as to satisfy the requirements of, and step by step develop human resources for, the preventive medicine system both quantitatively and qualitatively.

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- To re-plan the system of production of vaccines and medical biologicals. To formulate appropriate policies on the domestic production of vaccines and medical biologicals. To invest in the development of bio-technologies for research, production and testing of new vaccines in order to satisfy the domestic demand and then the export demand.

- To implement the planning on the provincial-level preventive medicine system so as to promptly and effectively satisfy the requirements of epidemic prevention and combat.

- To formulate a scheme on support for development of district-level preventive medicine centers. To enhance preventive activities at the grassroots level.

- To increase state budget investment in preventive medicine commensurate with the country's socio-economic development rate. To prioritize investment in densely populated cities and regions which are highly exposed to a number of epidemics and diseases such as Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City and in those areas where the preventive medicine system remains inadequate such as the Central Highlands, the central costal region, the Mekong river delta region and the northern mountainous region.

- To enhance the mobilization of other lawful financial sources, especially from the private sector and international organizations.

- To enhance comprehensive international cooperation on preventive medicine. To pay attention to information and experience sharing, personnel training, cooperation in scientific research and investment in the development of high technologies.

Article 2.- Programs of action

1. To continue effectively implementing programs of action on preventive medicine which have been approved by the Prime Minister

a/ The national target program on prevention and combat of a number of social diseases and epidemics and HIV/AIDS.

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c/ The program on prevention and combat of child malnutrition and iodine deficiency disorders.

2. To work out new programs of action to be submitted to the Prime Minister

a/ A program on strengthening the capacity of provincial and district-level preventive medicine centers.

b/ A program on enhancing the system of surveillance and quick response to promptly prevent contagious diseases.

c/ A program on prevention and combat of a number of non-contagious diseases such as cardiovascular diseases, cancer and diabetes...

d/ A program on prevention and combat of accidents and injuries.

e/ A program on prevention and combat of school diseases and disabilities.

Article 3.- Organization of implementation

1. The Ministry of Health shall assume the prime responsibility for, and coordinate with other ministries, branches, localities, mass organizations and social organizations in, implementing the strategy; elaborate programs of action and projects defined in the strategy for submission to the Prime Minister; elaborate annual and long-term plans for implementation of the strategy, concurrently take responsibility for coordination and supervision of the implementation results and annually report to the Prime Minister thereon.

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3. The Ministry of Planning and Investment and the Ministry of Finance shall arrange capital for the implementation of this strategy under annual and long-term plans; mobilize aid sources, loans and official development assistance for preventive medicine.

4. The Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment shall assume the prime responsibility for, and coordinate with the Ministry of Health and concerned ministries and branches in, formulating policies on environmental protection, prevention and control of environmental pollution so as to prevent risks of diseases and disabilities; closely coordinate with the Health Ministry in organizing the implementation of the Vietnam national strategy on preventive medicine to 2010 and orientations towards 2020 as well as the national strategy on environmental protection to 2010 and orientations towards 2020.

5. The Ministry of Public Security, the Ministry of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs and the Ministry of Health shall, according to their functions and tasks, coordinate with concerned ministries and branches in further enhancing the prevention and combat of drug addiction and prostitution so as to restrict the harms and spread of the HIV/AIDS epidemic.

6. The Ministry of Transport shall assume the prime responsibility for, and coordinate with the Ministry of Health, the Ministry of Public Security and concerned ministries and branches in, enhancing the formulation and implementation of solutions to ensure traffic safety so as to restrict and minimize accidents and injuries.

7. The Ministry of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs shall assume the prime responsibility for, and coordinate with the Ministry of Health, the Ministry of Finance and concerned ministries and branches in, formulating and implementing policies on employment, ensuring social welfare and solutions to the management of labor sanitation; ensuring healthcare for pupils and students at vocational training institutions.

8. The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development shall assume the prime responsibility for, and coordinate with the Ministry of Health, the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment in, accelerating the implementation of the program on clean water and environmental sanitation; managing and supervising the use of chemicals in agriculture.

9. The Ministry of Culture and Information shall assume the prime responsibility for, and coordinate with the Ministry of Health and concerned ministries and branches in, directing and carrying out the work of communication and education about health, prevention and combat of epidemics and diseases.

10. The Ministry of Science and Technology shall assume the prime responsibility for, and coordinate with the Ministry of Health and concerned ministries and branches in, formulating national standards in the domain of preventive medicine.

11. The Ministry of Education and Training shall assume the prime responsibility for, and coordinate with the Ministry of Health in, elaborating and implementing a program on training of preventive medicine personnel; consolidating the school healthcare network; actively applying measures for prevention and combat of diseases and disabilities in schools, incorporating the health education program into school programs suitable to each grade.

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13. The Ministry of Home Affairs shall assume the prime responsibility for, and coordinate with the Ministry of Health and concerned ministries and branches in, further consolidating the organizational apparatus and elaborating appropriate policies and regimes for preventive medicine personnel.

14. The Ministry of Defense shall assume the prime responsibility for, and coordinate with the Ministry of Health in, assuring epidemic prevention and combat in the army; properly implementing the program on coordination between civil and military health services and assuring readiness to participate in overcoming consequences of calamities and disasters in order to prevent epidemics.

15. The Central Committee of the Vietnam Fatherland Front and its member organizations, socio-political organizations and other social organizations shall coordinate with the Ministry of Health in implementing the strategy in their relevant domains.

Article 4.- This Decision takes effect 15 days after its publication in "CONG BAO."

Article 5.- Ministers, heads of ministerial-level agencies, heads of government-attached agencies and presidents of provincial/municipal People's Committees shall implement this Decision.