The Health Care Department of the Ministry of
Health is encouraging major hospitals in Vientiane to upgrade their facilities
in preparation for Laos' integration into the Asean Economic Community (AEC) at
the end of 2015.
Deputy
Director General of the department Associate Prof. Dr Bounnack Saysanasongkham
told Vientiane Times this week that improvements are required in various areas
within the healthcare service. These include legal documents, administration,
rules and principles for work conduct, along with benefits for medical staff
who work overtime.
Dr
Bounnack said, "Installing modern equipment and human resource training is
necessary to improve the standard of our medical facilities."
"This
may be difficult, however, as the government has a limited budget and a lot of
money is required to buy modern equipment," he said.
He
added that in order to solve this problem hospital administrators are advised
to collaborate with the private sector to ensure mutual benefits.
Dr
Bounnack said, "If we have good standards in our health care system it
would not only reduce the number of Lao citizens seeking medical care in
neighbouring countries, it would also attract foreigners living in Laos or
nearby to receive medical treatment from Lao doctors."
Regional
and provincial hospitals were advised to improve their services and ensure that
they could operate as a general hospital while also specialising in a specific
field of care such as Mahosot Hospital, which is a general hospital
specialising in the treatment of heart disease, he said.
Although
the Ministry of Health has already begun planning the medical service
advancement, some challenges still need to be addressed.
The
lack of quality and quantity of medical staff is one of the many problems to be
overcome in the development of the health sector. Most doctors work in three
different roles of giving treatment, teaching and training.
As a
result, patients may not always be able to receive adequate medical treatment
from doctors as they are often away teaching students at university or training
medical staff in the provinces.
The
Deputy Minister of Health Associate Prof. Dr Bounkong Syhavong told Vientiane
Times that Lao doctors and nurses have basic medical techniques, which are just
as good as other Asean member countries’ doctors and nurses.
However
Lao medical staff may not have certain skills equivalent to Asean medical
professionals when it comes to the use of modern medical equipment as they may
not be in frequent use in Laos, he said.
Dr
Bounkong said, "Upgrading professional skills will not only benefit
effective treatment of patients, it will also give Lao doctors the opportunity
to work in other Asean countries."
Adding
that, the use of English would also be another way to assist them in receiving
an accurate diagnosis for effective treatment.
English
is very important when travelling in Asean countries for work, whether they
receive Asean patients or if they choose to go to a Lao hospital for treatment.
Dr
Bounkong urged hospitals to continue upgrading their medical services into
modern facilities in preparation for the AEC integration.
The
management of foreign doctors working in Laos will also depend on curative law,
investment law and pharmaceutical law.
So far,
the Ministry of Health has advised the University of Health Sciences to develop
a postgraduate curriculum in line with the frame of other Asean countries in
order to ensure good quality doctors in the future.
This
curriculum is being developed in cooperation with Vietnam and Thailand.
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