President of the Vietnam Medical Association (VMA) Nguyen Thi Xuyen has received the rotational chairmanship of the Medical Association of Southeast Asian Nations (MASEAN) for the 2018-2020 tenure.

Deputy PM Vu Duc Dam speaks at 18th MASEAN conference of the Medical Association of Southeast Asian Nations in Hanoi

The chair was handed over at the 18th MASEAN conference, themed “Third party administration and medical registration among Southeast Asian countries”, which opened in Hanoi on May 3.

The event was attended by Vietnamese Deputy Prime Minister Vu Duc Dam, President of the World Medical Association Yoshitake Yokokura, Vietnamese Minister of Health Nguyen Thi Kim Tien, and representatives of the World Health Organisation and medical associations of Southeast Asian nations.

In his speech, Deputy PM Vu Duc Dam highlighted the conference’s importance to the development of the VMA and health care system in Vietnam, adding that it is also a contribution to the regional countries’ comprehensive cooperation and a practical action of the ASEAN Community to realise health-related goals in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

He affirmed that the Vietnamese Government always highly appreciates efforts of Vietnamese doctors. The VMA is playing an increasingly crucial role in making policies, popularising knowledge and monitoring State agencies’ implementation of health policies.

Addressing the event, VMA President Nguyen Thi Xuyen noted the MASEAN, founded in 1980, aims to strengthen relations between medical associations and experts of ASEAN countries, research into and disseminate medical knowledge, report on professional issues, and make common policies to ensure the best possible health care for people. 

This is a foundation for the MASEAN to greatly help with improving the quality of health care for more than 650 million people in ASEAN, she said, adding that the VMA is a responsible member in realising the targets of the MASEAN.-VNA