On July 23, a National Assembly delegation led by Hoang Anh Cong, Deputy Chairman of the National Assembly's Committee for People's Aspirations and Supervision, met with the Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee to discuss voter recommendations on strengthening the healthcare workforce to improve the quality of health stations in communes under the new two-tier local government model.
HCMC short of nearly 1,900 doctors and medical professionals
Reporting at the meeting, Dr. Nguyen Van Vinh Chau, Deputy Director of the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Health, said the city has nearly doubled staffing at health stations in communes following the reorganization of the local government system. However, serving a population of nearly 15 million continues to place significant pressure on the healthcare network, leaving many health stations short of doctors and specialized medical personnel, particularly in densely populated areas and gateway locations.
As of mid-June 2026, the city's 168 health stations employed 6,603 personnel, an increase of 94.03 percent compared with before the administrative restructuring. The workforce includes 1,371 doctors, 1,478 nurses, 967 assistant physicians, 880 pharmacists, and 578 midwives. All health stations now have at least one full-time doctor, meeting the minimum requirement for primary healthcare services.
Although Ho Chi Minh City has introduced multiple measures to attract healthcare workers including practical training programs for 821 young doctors, hiring 1,165 contract employees outside official staffing quotas, recruiting 153 retired doctors to continue working in primary healthcare, and planning to rotate 1,000 doctors from higher-level hospitals to support commune health stations, the workforce shortage remains severe.
The city is still short of 578 employees compared with its approved staffing quota and lacks 1,891 personnel compared with actual demand. As many as 125 of the 168 health stations do not have sufficient staff, 102 stations have fewer than the minimum of seven doctors, and 122 stations have fewer than 10 doctors, Dr. Nguyen Van Vinh Chau said.
He attributed the shortage to current staffing regulations, which were designed for the previous administrative model and no longer reflect reality, as many wards and communes now serve populations ranging from 50,000 to more than 200,000 following administrative mergers. Workforce turnover has also increased, with 198 healthcare workers resigning or transferring during the first six months of 2026, while only 69 new employees were recruited.
To address the problem, Ho Chi Minh City proposed that the Government introduce special incentive policies for grassroots healthcare workers, particularly those serving in disadvantaged areas, island communes, and specialties that struggle to attract personnel. These include preventive medicine, psychiatry, forensic medicine, forensic psychiatry, emergency and critical care, pathology, and pre-hospital emergency services. The city also urged the Ministry of Health to promptly issue new regulations on job positions and staffing norms based on actual population size.
HCMC praised for strengthening grassroots healthcare amid governance reform
Speaking at the meeting, Deputy Chairman Hoang Anh Cong commended the Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee for maintaining, strengthening, and expanding the grassroots healthcare workforce while simultaneously implementing the two-tier local government model without disrupting healthcare services.
He noted several positive outcomes, including increased staffing at primary healthcare facilities, training and rotation programs for doctors, ensuring every health station has a full-time doctor, recruiting additional personnel beyond official staffing quotas, effectively utilizing community health collaborators, gradually expanding the range of medical services, and improving the quality of primary healthcare. The city has also introduced coordination mechanisms, support policies, and other special measures to strengthen the commune- and ward-level healthcare network.
The Deputy Chairman of the National Assembly's Committee for People's Aspirations and Supervision urged the Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee to continue reviewing and comprehensively assessing the current state of the grassroots healthcare workforce, clarify the factors affecting recruitment, deployment, transfers, incentives, and staff retention, and develop appropriate solutions to ensure the long-term stability of the primary healthcare system.
Regarding the city's proposals, the oversight delegation said it would carefully study all recommendations in an objective and comprehensive manner. The delegation emphasized that its oversight work aims not only to identify shortcomings but also to pinpoint institutional, policy, and legal barriers in order to recommend that the National Assembly, the Government, and relevant ministries revise and improve regulations to facilitate the development of the grassroots healthcare workforce.
