Vietnam formulates strategy to reduce COVID-19 related deaths
Vietnam will continue to speed up COVID-19 vaccinations and access treatment medication in an effort to reduce numbers of critically-ill patients and deaths linked to the SARS-CoV-2 virus.
The goal is part of a strategy the Ministry of health has formulated to reduce the fatality rate in Vietnam which was unveiled by MoH Do Xuan Tuyen in Hanoi on December 8.
According to data from the MoH, approximately 130 million COVID-19 vaccine doses have been administered nationwide, with 97% of people aged 18 and above receiving their first shot and 70% given their second shot. However, the fatality rate remains high, standing at around 200 cases daily.
Tuyen affirmed the local mortality rate is much lower compared to the rest of the world, and explained that the majority of deaths involved COVID-19 patients with underlying or chronic diseases, or elderly people in poor health.
To better protect people from virus infection and reduce numbers of critically ill patients and deaths, he said Vietnam will give people a booster jab, with priority to be given to high-risk groups, including the elderly and those with underlying illnesses.
Asymptomatic and mild cases will be allowed to receive treatment at home, and only serious cases are transferred to hospitals to ease pressure on quarantine and medical facilities.
In addition, the MoH is trying to access COVID-19 drugs to support treatment for infection cases. Currently, Vietnam is using several kinds of drugs for COVID-19 treatment such as Molnupiravir, Remdesivir, and Favipiravir.
Recently, the MoH also permitted the use of Xuyen Tam Lien (Andrographis paniculata), a familiar traditional medicine, as part of COVID-19 treatment.
The country is in the process of conducting phase one, two, and three clinical trials on traditional medicines such as herbs against COVID-19, said Tuyen.
The health official revealed six local companies have so far registered to produce drugs against the virus, with a production capacity of at least one million doses per day.
As of 06pm on December 8 Vietnam has detected more than 1.35 million COVID-19 cases since the start of the first outbreak in January 2020, ranking 33rd out of 223 countries and territories worldwide.
Of the total, 1,036,393 patients have been discharged from hospital after making a full recovery from the disease.
As many as 26,930 patients have died of the virus, making up 2% of the total number of infections.
