Thuan made the comment at a workshop national examinations to assess medicine practice capability. This is one of the first activities of the National Medical Council (NMC), established in 2021, where Thuan is the chair, that shares and learns experiences from Japan and Thailand on organizing national exams on professional capability assessment. 

According to Thuan, the establishment of NMC and a national professional exam will serve as the basis for the watchdog agency to grant licenses for medicine practice. The model is being applied in many countries.

Tuan, while affirming that the current procedures for granting practice licenses are too simple, said Vietnam needs to set regulations on licensing to practice medicine in order to ensure compatibility and correspondence with international and regional practice.

This will allow Vietnam's medical examination and treatment workforce to integrate more deeply into the world. Also, it will pave the way for the movement of foreign medicine practitioners to Vietnam.

Associate Professor Luong Ngoc Khue, and Director of the Ministry of Health’s (MOH) Department of Medical Examination and Treatment Management, said under the plan, NMC will preside over the compilation and promulgation of a set of tools and organize tests to assess the practice capability for medical workers, including doctor, nurse, midwife, physician, medical engineer, clinical nutritionist, outpatient paramedic and clinical psychologist.

The work is scheduled to be deployed within six years, 2024-2029. The application will begin in 2027 for doctors, and later for other titles.

“This is a long and arduous path, which requires steadfastness and perseverance of those involved and the cooperation and support of ministries, branches, and training units,” he said.

According to MOH, there are 66 university-level, 102 junior college-level and 37 intermediate-level training establishments, producing 95,000 doctors and over 106,000 nurses as of 2020.

The establishment of NMC is an important milestone for the Vietnamese health system, especially for practitioners and the health workforce training system. This is an organization established by the Prime Minister, with the function of independently evaluating professionals’ capacity to practice medical examinations and treatment. It has its own seal and headquarters.

The news release published by the World Health Organization two years ago, when NMC was established, emphasized that medical education reform is one of WHO’s priorities in Vietnam and is critical for the country’s ability to meet its health needs.

Linh Trang