Vietnam's national strategy on reproductive health care for the 2001-2010 period

Vietnam's national strategy on reproductive health care for the 2001-2010 period

1. Goal and objectives on Reproductive Health Care 

a. Goal

By 2010, to achieve a marked improvement in the reproductive health (RH) status and narrow the gap between regions and target groups by better meeting various demands for RH in line with different local situations, especially taking disadvantaged areas and target groups into account.

b. Objectives

• To make remarkable changes in perception, support and commitment to realizing objectives and contents of reproductive health care (RHC) by people of all strata, first of all by leaders and heads of institutions and associations.
• To maintain the sustainable trend of reducing fertility; to ensure the rights of women and couples to have children and to select quality contraceptive methods; to decrease unwanted pregnancies and abortion-related complications.
• To improve the health status of women and mothers; to reduce the rate of maternal mortality and morbidity, and children’s mortality among different regions and target groups, taking disadvantaged areas and beneficiaries of government policies into special account.
• To take efficient preventive measures in a bid to reduce the incidence of disease and cure reproductive tract infections and sexual transmission diseases (STD), including HIV/AIDS, and infertility-related problems.
• To deliver better RHC to the elderly, particularly to older women; to provide early diagnosis and treatment with breast cancer and other cancers of the male and female reproductive tracts.
• To improve the RH status and sexual health of adolescents through education, counseling and provision of specific RHC services for specific age groups.
• To improve male and female awareness of sex and sexuality to facilitate their fulfillment of the reproductive rights and responsibilities, and develop safe and responsible sexual relations on the basis of equality and mutual respect in a bid to improve the RH and the quality of life.

2. Key solutions and policies

a. Promoting information, education, and communication (IEC)

• To deploy various media channels and other forms of dissemination of information, education and communication.
• To access to all the age groups to improve their perception, consciousness, and awareness.
• To be committed to implementing the objectives and content of the RHC.

b. Strengthening organization system and developing human resource for RHC service delivery

• To reinforce and clearly define functions, responsibilities, and coordination within medical establishments, maternal and children’s healthcare and family planning institutions, including public and private ones.
• To incorporate other programs, such as population, family planning, nutrition, and HIV/AIDS prevention.
• To strengthen organization system and hold training courses in the RHC for staffs.
• To ensure sufficient provision of equipment, including communication devices, emergency ambulances, educational supplies, and medicines in order to provide best techniques for RH diagnosis, prevention, emergency aid, and treatment.

c. Improving policies and laws to facilitate the implementation of the Strategy

• To study policies and submit to the competent authorities normative legal documents on developing small-sized families and gender equality.
• To promote the use of modern contraceptive methods; to encourage medical staffs to further study and to work in disadvantaged remote areas.
• To study and promulgate normative legal documents on in vitro fertilization, paid childbearing, and sex transformation etc.

d. Socialization, inter-sectoral and international cooperation

• To promote cooperation between ministries and sectors, social organizations.
• To get people and the entire society, including the private sector, involve in the RHC activities.
• To diversify the provision of RH counseling and services for different target groups.
• To expand and improve efficiency of bilateral and multilateral cooperation with different countries, international organizations and non-government organizations in the RHC field.

e. Training and scientific research

• To hold advanced training courses for RHC specialists, particularly at local level. Focus shall be provided on training in skills by doing, like skills to advise and communicate with different target groups and the community.
• To concentrate research on the infertility issue, breastfeeding, diseases of the reproductive tract, particularly reproductive tract cancer, men’s sexual health and act, the RH of adolescents and men, RHC-related knowledge, attitude and practice and some other relevant issues in order to improve the RHC quality.

f. Funding sources for the RHC

Funding for the RHC is due to come from state budget, health insurance premiums, hospital bills and service fees, bilateral and multilateral cooperation sources of NGOs and community contributions. Out of that, the state budget shall be the main source and be set aside as a specific spending on the HR development, training, IEC, research and application of advanced technology, improving technical infrastructure and management, accelerating coordination and aid to RHC institutions and branches. The state fund shall be allocated according to plan. The Ministry of Finance will balance these accounts and allocate a separate amount of fund, which is set out in the annual state budget plan.

g. Leadership and management

To strengthen management and coordination of RHC activities, including the building and improvement of the RHC Management Information Systems and information on the RHC.

3. Arrangement for the implementation

The RHC strategy is due to be implemented in two phases through specific actions.

a. Phase 1 (2001-2005)

• To maintain IEC activities, provide available services, establish and conserve a favorable environment for RHC activities.
• To amend and supplement policies and regulation, training materials and legal documents stipulating and guiding the provision of services; to carry out the strategy for human resource development, strengthen systems for professional management and monitoring as well as for financial and resource management.
• To step by step incorporate some new RH elements into the current reproductive health service package.
• To draw up a mechanism for coordination among partners engaged in the RHC activities in the implementation of monitoring and evaluation activities.
• To conduct field studies on some priority RHC subjects; to successfully develop models for nationwide replication.
• To step up activities to meet the needs of adolescent RHC health and mobilize men's participation in the RH field.
• To speed up dissemination of information and provision of services to remote areas and ethnic minorities’ regions.

b. Phase 2 (2006 – 2010)

• To continue activities commencing in Phase 1.
• To focus on building impact indicators in a more comprehensive manner along with monitoring indicators in order to meet the requirements of higher quality of care.
• To step up the provision of sufficient RHC services in a broad sense at all levels.
• To institutionalize the planning, inspection and evaluation by the manager on the basis of effective use of reliable data.
• To continuously implement training, research, inspection, evaluation and quality IEC activities with a view to improving professional knowledge and skills of staffs.
• During the implementation of the Strategy, it is significant to focus on capacity building, setting direction towards most efficient resource investments, so as to ensure its sustainable development.

Monday, October 02, 2006

Source: VTIC