In a remarkable display of teamwork and dedication, the heart of a 32-year-old man was safely transported and transplanted in just 10 hours, thanks to the coordinated efforts of more than 100 doctors, medical staff, and traffic police officers from Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City. This heroic operation gave new life to a patient in desperate need.

On the night of August 22, Hanoi’s Saint Paul Hospital received N.D.T., a 32-year-old man in critical condition following a severe traffic accident.

At 3:15am on August 23, doctors conducted a clinical evaluation and suspected that the patient was brain dead. After three thorough assessments by leading specialists, it was confirmed that the patient would not survive.

In the face of this unexpected tragedy, the patient’s family made a courageous and compassionate decision to donate his organs, offering hope and life to others.

Following directives from the National Organ Transplant Coordination Center, the donor’s heart was designated for a patient with severe heart disease at the University of Medicine and Pharmacy Hospital in Ho Chi Minh City.

The donor’s liver, kidneys, and corneas were also allocated to other patients at Viet Duc Hospital, Saint Paul Hospital, and the 108 Military Central Hospital.

On August 24, the organ retrieval and transportation plan was meticulously executed.

At 5pm, Hanoi traffic police deployed specialized vehicles to rush medical experts and the necessary samples from Saint Paul Hospital to Noi Bai Airport for compatibility testing. Once the samples were confirmed, the team returned to the hospital to proceed with the organ retrieval.

At 8:10pm, amid heavy rain in the capital, Hanoi’s Traffic Police Department began escorting the heart from Saint Paul Hospital to Noi Bai Airport. After 30 minutes, the medical team successfully transported the donated heart to the airport for its journey to Ho Chi Minh City.

Simultaneously, at Tan Son Nhat Airport in Ho Chi Minh City, nearly 50 traffic police officers with specialized motorcycles were mobilized to assist the organ transport team.

The University of Medicine and Pharmacy Hospital in Ho Chi Minh City also dispatched two ambulances and two administrative vehicles to the airport.

The route from Tan Son Nhat Airport to the University of Medicine and Pharmacy Hospital is not long, but it is complex and often congested. Thanks to the support of the traffic police, the precious donated heart was delivered to the hospital in the shortest possible time.

Upon arrival, the heart was immediately transplanted into the recipient by the medical team at the University of Medicine and Pharmacy Hospital, with support from the heart transplant team at Viet Duc Hospital in Hanoi.

The surgery, which lasted through the night, concluded at 3am on August 25. This operation marked the first heart transplant performed at the University of Medicine and Pharmacy Hospital in Ho Chi Minh City.

Within approximately 10 hours, the heart of a young man from Hanoi began beating again in the body of a patient in Ho Chi Minh City.

This life-saving journey, spanning over 1,000 kilometers, was made possible by the coordinated efforts of nearly 100 doctors, medical staff from three hospitals – Saint Paul, Viet Duc, and the University of Medicine and Pharmacy in Ho Chi Minh City - and traffic police from both cities, all working together to deliver the priceless gift of life.

Bach Duong