On the morning of April 17, at Binh Phu Park, the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Health held a launch ceremony for a citywide public health check-up campaign across 168 wards, communes, and special administrative units.
In attendance were Nguyen Phuoc Loc, Deputy Secretary of the Ho Chi Minh City Party Committee and Chairman of the Vietnam Fatherland Front Committee in Ho Chi Minh City; Nguyen Manh Cuong, Vice Chairman of the Ho Chi Minh City People’s Committee; and Nguyen Viet Long, Deputy Head of the Party Committee’s Commission for Propaganda and Mass Mobilization in Ho Chi Minh City.
Shifting toward proactive, lifecycle-based healthcare
Speaking at the event, Nguyen Manh Cuong, Vice Chairman of the Ho Chi Minh City People’s Committee, said this is an important event demonstrating the city’s political commitment to protecting public health, and a concrete step in implementing Resolution No. 72/NQ-TW of the Politburo on strengthening the protection, care, and improvement of public health in the new context.
According to Mr. Nguyen Manh Cuong, following directions from the City Party Secretary at the 5th Conference of the HCMC Party Executive Committee for the 2025–2030 term, the city has set a target of providing health check-ups and screenings for 100 percent of residents at least once in 2026.
This is not only an operational target but also a significant shift in the city’s healthcare approach from reactive treatment after illness occurs to proactive prevention, early detection, early management, and timely intervention. The program also contributes to gradually building a lifecycle-based health management system, aiming for comprehensive, continuous, and sustainable healthcare.
To ensure the campaign is effective, widely implemented, and delivers long-term value, Vice Chairman Nguyen Manh Cuong called on the Department of Health and the entire healthcare sector to organize implementation in a systematic and scientific manner, ensuring professional quality, safety, and convenience for residents. He also emphasized the importance of fully updating health check results into electronic health records to gradually build an integrated, long-term, lifecycle-based health management system.
People’s committees of wards, communes, and special administrative units are required to proactively review, compile lists, notify, and mobilize residents to participate in health check-ups, ensuring no one is left out, especially the elderly, people with disabilities, poor and near-poor households, and other vulnerable groups. Departments, agencies, and mass organizations are urged to coordinate closely with the health sector in communication, mobilization, and implementation to facilitate public access to the program.
All citizens of the city are encouraged to actively participate in health check-ups and screenings as per local guidelines. This is not only a rightful benefit for each individual but also a responsibility towards their family and community. Proactively undergoing regular health examinations will enable individuals to better understand their health status, allowing them to adjust their lifestyle and improve their quality of life, said Nguyen Manh Cuong, Vice Chairman of the People's Committee of Ho Chi Minh City.
Expanding access and ensuring inclusive community-based care
According to Associate Professor Nguyen Anh Dung, Deputy Director of the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Health, the sector is implementing synchronized solutions to bring healthcare services closer to people and ensure no one is left behind, focusing on three key groups of measures such as organizing community-based health check-ups and screenings with primary care as the foundation; conducting periodic specialized screening campaigns in communities; and strengthening consultation, health check-ups, and disease screening at medical facilities across the city.
The health sector will gradually standardize health check-up, screening, and diagnostic packages, enhance communication to help residents easily choose services, and move toward establishing a culture of periodic health check-ups across society. A distinctive feature of this program lies not only in its large scale but also in its new approach, data-driven health management with continuous lifecycle monitoring.
“The health sector clearly identifies three development pillars: primary healthcare as the foundation, specialized healthcare as the driving force, and digital transformation as the pillar. Only when these three pillars operate in sync can we build a modern, equitable, and effective healthcare system,” Nguyen Anh Dung emphasized.
