Where Traditional Medicine Shines

Modernising traditional medicine and combining traditional medicine with modern medicine are urgent development requirements. This significance is reflected in the Prime Minister’s Decision No. 2166 dated November 30, 2010 which covers major contents: Government’s Action Plan for Vietnamese traditional medicine development till 2020; Modernisation and development of traditional medicine for public health protection, care and improvement; and Consolidation and development of traditional medicine network.

 

Doing this work well means bringing the cause of public health care to new highs. Taking a shortcut to new trends, the National Hospital of Traditional Medicine has continuously invested in expanding professional units and applying modern equipment to diagnosis and treatment as in other leading central general and specialised hospitals. The hospital has also applied and developed traditional medicine remedies to incurable diseases like peripheral artery disease or intermittent claudication, stroke, cirrhosis, chronic hepatitis, blood lipids, sugar metabolism and cardiovascular diseases, etc.

 

To successfully and harmoniously combine traditional and modern medicines, apart from infrastructure investment, the National Hospital of Traditional Medicine also fosters professional knowledge and skills for its staffs. It has applied a variety of training methods like on-the-job training, continuation training, etc. Its professors and doctors frequently attend scientific conferences, exchange treatment experience and scientific researches with hospitals and institutes in ASEAN countries and the rest of the world as well as other traditional medicine hospitals in the country. The combination of traditional and modern medicines has generated great achievements in disease diagnosis and treatment, particularly in surgical interventions.

 

At present, the hospital has 26 departments and four centres, divided in three divisions: Clinical division, sub-clinical division, and administrative division. It now has 400 staffs, including two associate professors, 15 PhDs, 35 masters, 9 level-2 doctors, and 20 level-1 doctors.

 

The National Hospital of Traditional Medicine is the unique WHO traditional medicine collaborating centre in Vietnam and Western Pacific. The global integration of traditional medicine was intensified and expanded since 1988. The hospital has forged partnerships with over 40 organizations and countries in the world. In terms of disease treatment, scientific research and training, the hospital is recognised by the WHO as a leading traditional medicine centre in ASEAN and Western Pacific.

 

While speaking of successes in scientific research and application, Director Tran Quoc Binh named a number of scientific researches on traditional medicine, and the successful combination of traditional and modern medicines in complicated disease treatment at the National Hospital of Traditional Medicine. Combining modern medicine, the hospital has operated on different surgeries like gastrointestinal surgery, urological surgery, laparoscopic prostate surgery, etc. For example, the hospital applied advanced techniques in the world to haemorrhoids operations by using Longo LG-2000 method, laser knife, high-frequency ultrasonic waves, and ultrasound Doppler method.

 

Besides, the National Hospital of Traditional Medicine is also a famous producer of medicines. Currently, the hospital’s popular products include antihypertensive tea; ointment; rheumatologic medicine and sedative tea. Remarkably, it is now manufacturing a drug detoxification medicine called Camat. This is the outcome of 14-year research by Dr Tran Quoc Binh, Director of the hospital.

The hospital has been presented many awards and titles from the State and the Party, including the Independence Orders (third and second grades), Labour Order (first, second and third grades); Achievement Order (third class), etc.