On September 10, at the Long Dat Regional Medical Center, the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Health held a ceremony to review its pilot program on hospital-based practical training linked with commune-level health stations and officially opened the fourth Ho Chi Minh City Healthcare Job Fair.
The event was attended by Vice Secretary of the Party Committee and Chairman of the Vietnam Fatherland Front Committee of Ho Chi Minh City Nguyen Phuoc Loc; Associate Professor, PhD, Doctor Tang Chi Thuong, Director of the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Health; leaders of healthcare facilities; and young doctors.
Dr. Nguyen Van Vinh Chau, Deputy Director of the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Health, said the pilot program on hospital-based practical training linked with commune-level health stations had now fulfilled its historic mission during a particularly significant period for the city.
Across four cohorts, the program attracted a total of 819 young doctors. Notably, major general and specialized hospitals in Ho Chi Minh City fully covered tuition fees for participating doctors, with total funding amounting to approximately VND44 billion (US$1.7 million).
After the first three cohorts, 547 doctors were recruited, including 183 who chose to work long-term at grassroots healthcare facilities. The fourth cohort included 273 doctors and was the first to adopt the “6-3-6-3” rotation model (six months at a hospital, three months at a health station, another six months at a hospital, and the final three months back at a health station).
Notably, 21 doctors in the fourth cohort proactively registered to undertake practical training in Binh Duong and Ba Ria–Vung Tau, including doctors who went to work in Con Dao Special Zone. Another 41 doctors were assigned to health stations in remote and disadvantaged areas, including Can Gio, Thanh An, Cu Chi, Hoc Mon, and Binh Chanh.
This integrated model has helped train a new generation of well-rounded doctors who are equipped with strong expertise in emergency care and treatment while also gaining a deeper understanding of community healthcare.
Speaking at the ceremony, Vice Secretary of the Party Committee and Chairman of the Vietnam Fatherland Front Committee of Ho Chi Minh City Nguyen Phuoc Loc commended the coordinated efforts of the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Health, hospitals, and local authorities in implementing the city’s distinctive pilot program.
Young doctors participating in the program have a great opportunity to become fully involved in the entire chain of public healthcare activities across the city. Through this experience, they can receive education and training in medical ethics, clinical practice, professional conduct and medical theory, thereby enhancing both their professional ethics and expertise, he emphasized.
Regarding development orientations for the new period, he stressed that Ho Chi Minh City is actively developing a “multi-center, multi-tier, multi-polar” healthcare system to ensure equitable and continuous healthcare for residents throughout their lives.
In the coming period, the city is expected to study the transformation of regional medical centers into hospitals serving as second- and third-level facilities of the city’s top-tier hospitals, thereby strengthening resources and medical capacity at the grassroots level.
In addition, Ho Chi Minh City is proposing a number of new healthcare and social welfare policies, including 100 percent coverage of health insurance co-payments for certain serious illnesses for low-income people and children; free preventive health checkups and dental care for children aged 6 to 11 under the “school-health station” model; and preferential credit packages to support investment in healthcare technology and digital transformation.
The Vice Secretary of the Ho Chi Minh City Party Committee expressed his hope that medical professionals would continue to develop themselves according to four criteria: “excellent clinical skills, strong professional competence, exemplary medical ethics, and profound medical knowledge.”
Following the review ceremony, the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Health opened the fourth Healthcare Job Fair of 2026. The event was the largest of its kind to date, attracting nearly 1,000 doctors, nurses, and medical technicians to register.
The event serves as a direct bridge, enabling young doctors who have completed their practical training and obtained professional practice licenses to choose suitable workplaces, thereby helping strengthen the quality of human resources at gateway hospitals, regional hospitals, and commune- and ward-level health stations.
