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eal situation of Lam Dong's Public Health:

Constitution: A health service network has broadly settled in Lam Dong. The number of medical cadres recorded up to 30th June 2000 is approximately 2,600; together with them are nearly 1,000 health officers

working dedicatedly  day and night to serve people in the province. More than 400 of them have finished university or post- graduation. The province has approximately a personnel of 26.6 health officers for every10,000 people, 4.8 doctors for every 10,000 people, 20.9 sick-beds for every 10,000 people.

Material facilities: Most of the medical installations are left from the former regime. Consequently, they have deteriorated, and now need to be upgraded and enlarged so as to meet the requirements of present and future use. There are still 10 commune infirmaries which have to share some space in the People's Committee House, in local policlinics or even in people's houses.

Equipment: The treatment installations of provincial system are quite well equipped. Whereas, those of districts are still inadequate, especially equipment for emergency cases and in specialties.

Diseases: On account of Lam Dong's natural, economic and social characters, there have developed environmental problems affecting ecological conditions and people's health. Lam Dong is located in a region where malaria circulates and it is usually in danger of infectious diseases, marsh fever, haemorrhage, etc. On the other hand, pollution, uncontrollable migration, climatic changes as well as the many kinds of tourists visiting Dalat every year, all of these bring out a challenge to the Public Health in bringing health care to the masses, upholding the fairness in health care. This raises many problems for the Public Health to solve: food hygiene, food poisoning, social and professional diseases, etc.

Unfortunately, medical expenditure has never met the requirements. The annual budget for regular and developmental medical service only covers 50- 60% of the operational costs.  

ORIENTING in conserving and taking care of people's health in Lam Dong: 

General aims: Decreasing the rate of disease contraction; raising physical strength; raising longevity and helping improve the Vietnamese race.

Specific aims:

- Decreasing the rates of contracting and dying of marsh fever; eliminating the danger of epidemics; supplying enough salt with iodine for people so as to decrease the rate of goitre.

- Restraining as much as possible diseases from parasitical worms; decreasing the number of patients getting intestinal diseases in general and namely diarrhoea, restraining as much as possible deaths of diarrhoea;

ensuring  sources of safe water for 80% of the inhabitants, and helping 90% of the families to build hygienic latrines.

- Ensuring 100% of the mountain villages local polyclinics, 100% of the medical stations essential medicines, and 100% of the communes health officers.

- By 2005: 100% medical stations will have telephones connecting to district hospitals; 100% hospitals of districts, towns and cities will have departments of traditional medicine and rehabilitation; developing programmes of rehabilitation with the community's assistance. By 2010, all the communes will have newly- designed stations; hospitals in districts and in province system will be renovated and replenished with equipment; 100% communes will have doctors.

Directions: These are some directions to develop health care for people in the province:

- Continuing to implement actively the Party's view- points in medical activities; providing care of people's health in a more adequate, better and fairer manner; putting medical care at a higher- priority.

- Intensifying medical socialization in order to mobilize every resource for people's health care and developing Public Health based on science nationality and socialization.

- Promoting local strong points, especially in herbal medicine such as Artichoke, Cinchona etc. so as to make the Province Pharmaceutical products known in the area and countrywide.

- Intensifying international collaboration to invest in preventive medicine, to conserve the ecological

environment, to take care of mothers? and children's health, to build hospitals and sanatoriums, to equip medical installations, and to invest in producing medicines.

In communes: There must be from 4 to 6 health officers and 1 or 2 doctors, a well- equipped medical station with 3 to 5 sick- beds, 3 toilets, electricity, safe water, a refrigerator, a motorcycle, an amplifier, a TV set, and a hand loudspeaker in order to operate efficiently and to bring the Party's policies to the people, helping stabilize the political and social situation in the commune.

In districts: There must be a complete medical service with 3 medical branches: Prevention, Treatment, and Pharmacy; 3 lines for emergency and treatment in each of the districts; local infirmaries; health care stations in towns, villages, communes; 50 ? 100 sick- beds; 4 main departments: Internal medicine, Surgery, Obstetrics, Paediatrics, with specialised doctors; other departments (Ophthalmology, Otorhinolaryngology, Odonto- stomatology) with specialists to perform medium surgical operations.

In the province: Concentrating on constructing high- quality health centres; developing the Medical Middle- School into a Medical College or into the Medical Department of the Medical School in Ho Chi Minh City or at the University of Dalat. 

                     DR. LE THAI

Director of  Lam Dong Health Department

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