One of the reasons for Vietnam's success in controlling COVID-19 is its speed of response, twitted Guy Thwaites, director of Oxford University clinical research unit in Ho Chi Minh City.

The rapid case and contact tracing and quarantine since January when the first cases were reported in the country, as well as the prompt support for research and trials have contributed to the successful containment of the spread of the virus, he wrote.

He noted that Vietnam's rich experience in dealing with infectious disease outbreaks, such as the SARS epidemic from 2002 to 2003 and the following avian influenza, had helped the government and the public to better prepare for the COVID-19 pandemic.

Vietnam lifted its three-week social distancing measures in late April. No new infections have been recorded in the community for more than 40 days and zero death confirmed, according to the National Steering Committee for COVID-19 Prevention and Control./.

Covid-19-infected British pilot may not need lung transplant

The Covid-19-infected British pilot may not need a lung transplant as planned thanks to his ongoing recovery.

Vietnam had no new COVID-19 cases to report this morning, June 4, and this was also the 49th straight day since April 16 morning without locally-infected cases in the country.  

Of the country’s 328 Covid-19 patients, only 26 cases are still being treated in hospital. Among those, 13 have tested negative for the virus 1-2 times.

The most critical Covid-19 case, the 43-year-old British pilot has become totally conscious. He could do all of what doctors ask and smiled as they talked to him. He has stopped using the ECMO (extracorporeal membrane oxygenation) system since Wednesday.

Despite serious lung damage, around 40% of his lung has recovered.

Head of the Health Ministry's Department of Medical Examination and Treatment Luong Ngoc Khue said despite no longer relying on the ECMO system, his condition remains complicated with the serious lung problems and antimicrobial resistance. It would also take him several weeks to end the reliance on the ventilator.

Prof. Tran Binh Giang, Director of Viet Duc Hospital in Hanoi, said that the pilot was expected not to undergo a lung transplant as his condition had continued to improve.

Vietnam reports no new COVID-19 cases on June 4 morning

Vietnam has gone 49 straight days without community transmission

Vietnam reported no new COVID-19 cases on June 4 morning, marking the 49th straight day without community transmission, according to the National Steering Committee for COVID-19 Prevention and Control.

The total number of confirmed COVID-19 cases remained at 328, of whom 188 are imported cases and have been quarantined after their arrival.

On June 3, four more COVID-19 patients were given the all-clear and discharged from the Thai Binh General Hospital, bringing the total number of recoveries to 302, equivalent to 92.1 percent.

The remainders are being treated at provincial and central hospitals and have stable health condition. Among them, nine have tested negative for the novel coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 once and four others tested negative at least twice./.

Vietnamese citizens brought home from the UK

Nearly 340 Vietnamese citizens have been brought home safely from the UK on a repatriation flight that touched down in Việt Nam on Thursday.

The flight was arranged by the Vietnamese Embassy in the UK, the authorities in Việt Nam and the national flag carrier Vietnam Airlines.

It left Heathrow Airport in London on Wednesday, landing at Tân Sơn Nhất International Airport in HCM City the following day.

Onboard were children, students, the elderly and sick along with a number of tourists whose UK visas had expired but were previously unable to leave due to border closures.

The Embassy of Việt Nam in London has instructed citizens to complete all required procedures and cooperate with local authorities to support them during their journey home.

Upon landing, passengers and cabin crew members undertook medical checks and were quarantined in line with regulations.

Ministry of  Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Transport and other Government’s agencies, Vietnam Airline will continue arranging flights to bring its citizens home depending on the COVID-19 pandemic's developments, quarantine capacity of Vietnamese localities, and the demand of Vietnamese citizens living overseas. 

Malaysia considers allowing foreign entries

Malaysia’s Health Ministry is considering the possibility of allowing those who have been tested negative for COVID-19 for at least three days to enter Malaysia.

Health director-general Noor Hisham Abdullah told the press on June 3 that the initiative is applied for Malaysians who want to return to the country and foreigners who want to come to Malaysia.

Malaysia will allow the groups to enter if they have been tested negative at their respective countries, he added.

The official said the ministry is also considering whether to quarantine Malaysians who returned to the country at quarantine centres or at home.

All 35 local government officers, including Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin, who were ordered to undergo 14-day mandatory self-quarantine after they were found to be in close contact with an officer tested positive for COVID-19 were tested negative for the virus. They have been allowed to resume work on June 4.

The country reported 93 new COVID-19 infections on June 3, of which two were Malaysians. This brought the total cases to 7,970, including 115 deaths and 6,531 healed patients./.

Foreign experts, students to be permitted to enter Laos

Foreign experts and students will be allowed to enter Laos as the country is further lifting social distancing measures after no new COVID-19 cases have been reported for 52 consecutive days.

In its latest announcement which provides updates on entry and exit rules, the Lao Ministry of Foreign Affairs said Lao nationals in foreign countries who wish to come back home are required to register with the Lao embassy or consulate in the country of their residence to determine how their return can be facilitated.

Lao state agencies wishing to bring in foreign experts or students for essential reasons must also submit a document to the Secretariat of the National Taskforce Committee for COVID-19 Prevention and Control.

Individuals or legal entities wanting to bring in foreign investors or business people to explore investment opportunities need to follow the procedures outlined by relevant bodies before submitting an application to the Secretariat.

The representative offices of foreign diplomatic missions and international organisations in Laos wanting to bring in diplomats and foreign staff are required to submit a document detailing their intentions to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

All incoming foreigners must be tested for COVID-19 and obtain a certificate indicating they have tested negative for the virus. This must be issued in the country from which they have departed and presented to authorities at the Lao border. The certificate must have been issued no less than 72 hours before the start of their journey.

Anyone found to have COVID-19-like symptoms will be taken to a hospital where they will be isolated and tested for the virus.

People who have no symptoms are required to undergo a 14-day quarantine period at a special centre or hotel and provide samples for testing./.

Vietnam sends medical masks to Vietnamese community in central Russia

The Vietnamese Government has sent medical masks to the Vietnamese community in central Russia to help them cope with complicated developments of the COVID-19 pandemic in Russia.

The masks were transported to Russia on a recent flight of the Vietnam Airlines to bring Vietnamese in Russia back to Vietnam.

The Vietnam Consulate General in Ekaterinburg on June 3 handed over part of the masks to Vietnamese associations in the city. It will continue to distribute masks to Vietnamese living in other localities in the region.

Vietnam arranged a Vietnam Airline flight to bring home more than 340 citizens from Russia in May.

The flight, which departed from Moscow on May 12, carried children under the age of 18, students without a place to stay because of school and dormitory closures, the elderly, sick people, tourists and people whose visas had expired but could not leave the country./.

Thailand allows migrant workers to work in Thailand until July 31

The Thai Cabinet has decided to allow migrant workers from Cambodia, Laos and Myanmar to work in Thailand until July 31, 2020, to help reduce the potential spread of the coronavirus disease 2019, and to maintain a workforce as the situation gradually improves.

Previously, the Ministry of the Interior and the Ministry of Labour had allowed them to stay and work in the kingdom until May 31 this year.

The Government Spokeswoman, Prof. Dr. Narumon Pinyosinwat, was quoted by the National News Bureau of Thailand as saying on June 3 that with disease-control measures still in force, the Ministry of Labour called a meeting of various units. They resolved that the migrant workers from the three neighbouring countries can stay and work in Thailand between June 1 and July 31.

The migrant workers include two groups, one of which comprises Cambodian, Lao and Myanmar workers with work permits issued under a memorandum of understanding (MOU) on labour issues. The second group is Cambodian and Myanmar workers carrying a border pass in accordance with Section 64 of the Thai law.

NNT said the decision will reduce the risk of labourers contracting and spreading COVID-19, prevent later labour shortages and support economic restoration after the COVID-19 situation improves./.

Four more COVID-19 patients given all clear

Four more COVID-19 patients were given the all-clear on June 3, the treatment section under the National Steering Committee for COVID-19 Prevention and Control said.

The patients, who were treated at the Thai Binh General Hospital, are in stable health condition without fever, cough or breathing difficulties. They will continue staying in quarantine for health monitoring for the next 14 days.

Now the number of recovered COVID-19 patients in Vietnam has risen to 302 out of the total 328 cases.

The country has gone through 48th straight day since April 16 morning without locally-infected cases in the country. Up to 188 of the 328 confirmed infections so far were imported and quarantined upon their arrival./.

JICA helping Vietnamese hospitals improve infection control

The Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) handed over 2,000 handbooks on infection control practices to Cho Ray Hospital in HCM City on June 3, as part of its aid package to the hospital.

In order to support Vietnam in coping with the COVID-19 pandemic, JICA has decided to continue with aid packages of about 60 million JPY (551,000 USD) for the hospital and 20 million JPY (nearly 184,000 USD) for centres for disease control (CDCs) in Nam Dinh, Ha Giang, Bac Giang, Vinh Phuc, Kien Giang, and Tra Vinh provinces.

The handbook was compiled by the infection control ward at the hospital with technical assistance from JICA experts. It is also hoped to improve infection control at the Cho Ray Vietnam-Japan Friendship Hospital, to be established in the time to come, as well as at 21 provincial-level hospitals in the south and the Mekong Delta.

JICA is implementing a technical cooperation project to improve hospital management at Cho Ray Hospital through applying safety procedures for patients, coordinating between clinical procedures and multidisciplinary teams, and promoting measures to control hospital infections.

In August last year, in a bid to strengthen infection control at Cho Ray and within the framework of the project, training courses on the use of protective equipment were held for the hospital’s doctors and nurses.

JICA has implemented non-refundable aid projects since 2006 to help improve the capacity of medical laboratory networks regarding biosafety and the examination of highly hazardous and infectious pathogens at the National Institute of Hygiene and Epidemiology (NIHE) and the HCM City-based Pasteur Institute, in the context of Vietnam not having to deal with many infectious diseases in the past.

JICA experts have also worked with NIHE and the Pasteur Institute to identify solutions to improve testing capacity for dangerous infectious diseases as well as COVID-19 in provincial-level CDCs in particular and in medical establishments around Vietnam in general./.

EuroCham members raise US$100,000 to support Vietnam's Covid-19 fight

The donations by EuroCham members shows both their support for the government in its fight against the virus and their dedication to Vietnam’s long-term health and prosperity.

EuroCham Pharma Group members on June 3 handed over a total of US$100,000 (each contributing a minimum of US$5,000) to the Vietnam Fatherland Front in support of the national campaign on the prevention and treatment of Covid-19.

Vice President of the Standing Committee of the Vietnam Fatherland Front Truong Thi Ngoc Anh highly appreciated EuroCham Pharma Group members’ efforts in joining hands with the Vietnamese government to effectively combat the pandemic.

The pharmaceutical industry in general and Pharma Group members specifically are making collaborative efforts in the research and trials of therapeutic solutions for the prevention and treatment of Covid-19, said Dan Millard, co-chair of EuroCham Pharma Group.

Roeland Roelofs, co-chair of EuroCham Pharma Group, said that in these challenging times, the group reaffirms its steadfast commitment to make practical and timely contributions to Vietnam’s efforts in fighting Covid-19. 

“At the same time, we fulfill our mission to ensure fast and sustainable supply of and access to high quality and innovative medicines for Vietnamese patients not only for the treatment of Covid-19 and its symptoms, but also for patients with other acute or chronic diseases as well as prevention,” he added.

Nicolas Audier, chairman of EuroCham, said that its members’ donation to the Vietnam Fatherland Front and the national campaign on the prevention and treatment of Covid-19 shows both their support for the government in its fight against the virus and their dedication to Vietnam’s long-term health and prosperity.

Forty-five days after the Central Committee of the Vietnam Fatherland Front issued the call for “All people to join in supporting the prevention and control of Covid-19”, as of May 16, the amount contributed by agencies, units, organizations, businesses, individuals and overseas Vietnamese reached nearly VND2 trillion (US$85.6 million), according to Ngoc Anh.

“This largest ever aid amount has been possible thanks to the support from all sides towards the prevention and control of the pandemic. This indeed proves the trust and expectation of the public on the accountable and transparent allocation of support from the Vietnam Fatherland Front,” she said.