Domestic, global focus needed to address public health issues

A combination of various public health and preventive medicine specialties should be paid attention to at the domestic and international levels to protect people’s health amid emerging and re-emerging infectious diseases globally, Deputy Minister of Health Nguyen Truong Son told a recent conference at the Pasteur Institute in HCM City.
Domestic, global focus needed to address public health issues ảnh 1A child gets vaccinated at a centre in HCM City (Photo: VNA)
HCM City (VNA) - A combination of various public health and preventive medicinespecialties should be paid attention to at the domestic and internationallevels to protect people’s health amid emerging and re-emerging infectiousdiseases globally, Deputy Minister of Health Nguyen Truong Son told arecent conference at the Pasteur Institute in HCM City.

Problems in onecountry could affect other countries easier than in the past since pathogensand vectors now move further and faster than ever before through the globaltransportation network, he pointed out.

The incidence ofnon-communicable diseases too has increased, including in Vietnam where theycause 70 percent of deaths, he said.

“So the health sectorin the country has expanded co-operation with other countries and adoptedglobal scientific advances for the prevention and treatment of diseases.”

The Government hasinvested in developing preventive medicine facilities and human resources forearly prevention of diseases, he added.

Phan Trong Lan, headof the Pasteur Institute, said social media poses a challenge to public health,explaining, for instance, that many websites advocating against vaccines appearfirst when searching on Google.

Of 100 websites onvaccination, 43 per cent post contents against vaccines, he lamented.

Research has foundthat if parents spend five or 10 minutes reading information against vaccines,they do not get their children vaccinated.

It is very importantto ensure the websites of the World Health Organization and countries’ healthdepartments appear on top in online searches, he said.

According to theinstitute, immunisation is not only essential for children, but also beneficialto adults and pregnant women, patients with primary or secondary immunosuppression,those with chronic diseases, and many others.

Lan said more andmore inaccurate information about health is posted on the internet, posing amajor challenge to the health sector.

The conference sawexperts from disease control and prevention institutes and centres around thecountry table a number of studies on preventive medicine.

Son said theconference is a platform for scientists and policymakers to share experiencesand skills in public health.

He instructed thePasteur Institute, which is designated by the Ministry of Health to addresspublic health problems basing on evidence, to invest more in its facilities andtesting equipment./.
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