The emergence of COVID-19 as a global pandemic has highlighted the imperative need to improve the capacity and quality of intensive care for infectious diseases. The need is particularly acute in less well-resourced countries such as Vietnam, where there is a lack of Intensive Care Unit (ICU) beds, equipment and personnel, and the numbers of patients have exceeded the healthcare system’s capacity to care for them. To prepare for future pandemics, an integrated and collaborative solution focused on education, professional networks and clinical experience for local healthcare professionals is essential.
The Intensive Care Development Programme, which will take place during 2022 – 2024, has three objectives:
- Encourage and support intensive care unit teams in Vietnam to innovate and improve current care through high-quality education
- Strengthen intensive care networks within Vietnam and their international links
- Support members of intensive care units across Vietnam to visit centres of excellence in the United Kingdom (UK).
The Programme developed in collaboration with Dragon Capital Group will include an annual intensive-care medicine course on cutting-edge ICU medicine and good clinical and nursing care in resource-limited settings. It will also support the existing “Vietnam Intensive Care Society” and will negotiate for establishing formal linkswith other international ICU societies, especially in UK, Singapore, Australia/New Zealand and Europe. In addition, it will promote joint membership and clinical activities with St Thomas’ Hospital ICU in central London.