USAID provides liquid oxygen systems for 23 Vietnamese hospitals

USAID Vietnam Mission Director Aler Grubbs.

Hanoi (VNA) – The US Mission to Vietnam, through the US Agency for International Development (USAID), has announced the provision of liquid oxygen systems for 10 more Vietnamese hospitals, bringing the total number of Vietnamese hospitals receiving such systems from USAID to 23.

USAID Vietnam Mission Director Aler Grubbs made the announcement on September 26 alongside leaders from the Ministry of Health and numerous provincial departments of health, who gathered to celebrate the completion of USAID's installation of liquid oxygen systems in 13 hospitals across five provinces.

"The US Government is proud to support the Government of Vietnam on its COVID-19 response and advancing health security," said USAID Vietnam Mission Director Grubbs.

"The 13 newly installed liquid oxygen systems significantly improve critical health care in five provinces. We will provide Vietnam with ten more such systems over the coming year in six more provinces — to further strengthen the nation's health care system and save lives," he added.

Increasing patient access to oxygen strengthens the nation's healthcare system and saves lives. The completed liquid oxygen systems help 13 hospitals to support the care of patients with severe cases of COVID-19, as well as patients suffering other respiratory ailments, such as pneumonia and tuberculosis.

Over the next year, USAID will install new liquid oxygen systems in 10 hospitals in some of Vietnam's poorest and most remote areas across six additional provinces. This support further strengthens the long-standing health cooperation between the US and Vietnam as the two countries are celebrating the 10th anniversary of Comprehensive Partnership.

In Vietnam, on-site oxygen storage at smaller and provincial hospitals is rare, necessitating dependence on regular oxygen deliveries. However, oxygen can run out in times of surge demand, as happened during waves of the COVID-19 pandemic. Therefore, hospitals have an urgent need for a reliable supply of oxygen.

USAID provides liquid oxygen systems with an on-site storage tank, a vaporizer to convert liquid oxygen in the tank to gaseous oxygen, and a pressure regulator connected to the hospital's piping to transport the oxygen to patients' bedsides.

The agency also provides related staff training, equipment, and supplies to administer oxygen, such as high-flow nasal tubing and patient monitors, which allow hospital staff to efficiently track patients' vital signs and quickly respond to changes in patient conditions.

USAID's installation of the 23 liquid oxygen systems and related support, valued at 7.5 million USD, helps Vietnam's hospitals to provide thousands of additional patients with a reliable supply of medical oxygen.

Dr Ha Anh Duc, Chief of Office at the Ministry of Health, said medical cooperation between Vietnam and the US has been constantly reinforced and expanded.

Since the outset of the COVID-19, the US Government, through USAID, has assisted Vietnam in responding to the pandemic with various practical activities, particularly coordination in accelerating COVID-19 awareness campaigns and the US's donation of more than 40 billion doses of COVID-19 vaccines to Vietnam, he noted.

The US has also helped Vietnam build its healthcare system's capacity to give care to COVID-19 patients, he said, adding that the US has offered training for thousands of health workers, including doctors, nurses and laboratory staff, and provided technical support and life-saving medical supplies.

He said that the Ministry of Health wishes to further receive cooperation and support from the international community in healthcare, particularly in preventing and controlling emerging epidemics.

Previously, USAID installed a new liquid oxygen system at Hanoi-based Bach Mai Hospital, one of the biggest in Vietnam, on the occasion of the visit of US Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman. In addition, the US launched the US Centre for Disease Control and Prevention Southeast Asia Regional Office in Hanoi during the visit of US Vice President Kamala Harris last year./.