The Government has recently asked the Ministry of Health to work closely with domestic businesses to manufacture ventilators for hospitals across the country to treat patients infected with contagious diseases, including the COVID-19.

According to Deputy Prime Minister Trinh Dinh Dung, the health sector will 

With a well equipped lab, VinSmart is capable of producing ventilators
for local consumption (Photo: VinSmart)

Encounter difficulties in supplying ventilators to hospitals when the epidemic breaks out on a large scale. It is also not easy to place orders for the devices from abroad as they are now in short supply in countries seriously hit by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Given the current context, the promotion of research and production of domestic ventilators is vital to disease control in Vietnam, Dung said.

He asked the Ministry of Health to review the number of ventilators in hand, examine demands and draw up plans for placing orders in case of the spread of the coronavirus.

The ministry was required to work on research and production plans with domestic businesses that volunteer to manufacture ventilators in the country.

Vingroup recently announced it will research and manufacture invasive and non-invasive ventilators and body temperature monitors for domestic consumption. The group signed contracts with US partners to purchase components, and first complete products are expected to be commercially marketed in a couple of weeks.

Vingroup has two plants – VinFast and VinSmart which are capable of producing 45,000 noninvasive ventilators and 10,000 invasive ventilators a month, said Vingroup CEO Nguyen Viet Quang.