The 18th Hospital Management Asia conference opened in Hanoi on September 11 with the participation of over 2,500 delegates from 28 countries.

Vietnamese Minister of Health Nguyen Thi Kim Tien addresses the 18th
Hospital Management Asia conference that opened in Hanoi on September 11
(Photo: moh.gov.vn)

The annual event, the fourth of its kind hosted by Vietnam so far, aims to help hospital owners and directors, doctors and health officials in Asia to gain an insight into healthcare management thinking and the best practices and solutions from around the world.

They will discuss evolving business models, advanced technologies and improvements in management and healthcare systems so as to cut down costs and improve patient outcomes. Achievements by hospitals across Asia will also be honoured at the two-day conference.

In her speech, Vietnamese Minister of Health Nguyen Thi Kim Tien said in recent years, her ministry has carried out a reform programme for the health sector with a view to promoting universal healthcare, in which the quality of medical services are of critical importance.

She highlighted that the health insurance coverage in the country has reached 89 percent thanks to the State’s assistance for poor and near-poor people to buy the insurance. Additionally, the scope of health insurance benefits in Vietnam is rather wide compared to the premiums participants have to pay as it covers medicine, treatment costs of some serious illnesses, as well as organ transplant costs.

At the conference, a memorandum of understanding on healthcare cooperation was signed between three hospitals of Vietnam (Hung Vuong General Hospital, Quang Khoi General Hospital, and Otorhinolaryngology Hospital of the Central Region) and three healthcare establishments of Malaysia (Mahkota Medical Centre, Subang Jaya Medical Centre, and Sunway Medical Centre).

The Asian Hospital Management Awards were also presented to honour the Asian-Pacific hospitals with the best practices.