Leading doctors consult treatment methods for serious COVID-19 patients

The first patient was a 69-year-old British man who has been living with type 2 diabetes and high blood pressure. The patient required invasive mechanical ventilation and dialysis from March 15. Early March 16, he was transferred to the Department of Intensive Care. 

The second case was a 64-year-old Vietnamese woman who suffered from a chronic vestibular disorders. Since the afternoon of March 15, she was coping with increasing breath shortness. By 10:00 PM, she suffered from respiratory failure and was treated with mechanical ventilation and dialysis, then moved to the Department of Intensive Care.  

Doctors reported that the two patients had been treated positively with normal coronary arteries, normal pressure and blood oxygen.

On March 16, doctors of Bach Mai Hospital led by Deputy Director Ngo Quy Chau conducted an online consultation meeting with their colleagues of Facility No.2 of the National Hospital of Tropical Diseases in Kim Chung Commune. 

The medical experts revealed that thanks to intensive treatment, the British patient got better. However, he is still struggling with the illness.

Meanwhile, the Vietnamese patient is still struggling with her serious respiratory failure and severe lung damage.

So far, Vietnam has reported 57 infection cases, of whom 16 fully recovered.

National Committee demands clear-cut stand to staunch COVID-19 spread to Viet Nam

Deputy Prime Minister Vu Duc Dam, head of the Steering Committee for COVID-19 Prevention and Control. Photo: VGP

Members of the Steering Committee on COVID-19 Prevention and Control underlined the necessity to have a clear-cut stand to staunch spread of the noval coronavirus to Viet Nam, during a meeting on Monday morning. 

Such stand is of signficant importance as the virus has spread quickly to 156 countries and territories with 169,368 infection cases, including 6,501 fatalities. Meanwhile, all new infection cases (41) in Viet Nam have been reported since March 6, including 17 foreign nationals.

The body, led by Deputy Prime Minister Vu Duc Dam, urged competent authorities to seriously implement measures on mandatory quarantine for travellers upon their entry to Viet Nam.

The committee also proposed immediate body temperature checks and classification of passengers after they get off planes.

For Vietnamese returning from the pandemic-hit areas, competent authorities must quickly take them to centralized quarantine areas as planned, said the committee.

Experts emphasized the importance of taking synchronous measures to detect suspected cases as soon as possible through accelerating IT application, effective deployment of mandatory medical declaration and voluntary medical declaration for all Vietnamese among others.

As of early March 16, the Ministry of Health confirmed 57 positive cases, of whom 16 had recovered and exited hospitals.

Of the current 41 patients, four are struggling with severe illness due to their chronic health conditions.

Meanwhile, the number of people tested negative for the virus was 5,182 cases, according to the ministry.

Localities recorded positive cases including Vinh Phuc (11); HCMC (8); Khanh Hoa (1); Thanh Hoa (1); Ha Noi (11); Ninh Binh (1); Quang Ninh (5); Lao Cai (2); Da Nang (2), Hue (2), Quang Nam (3), Binh Thuan (9).

Hanoi isolates more than 600 citizens from coronavirus-stricken regions

The majority of isolated people are students and workers coming back from Europe, the epicenter of the Covid-19 outbreak outside China.

The Capital High Command on March 15 night took more than 600 Vietnamese returnees from Covid-19-hit countries and territories to a facility of the Military School for mandatory 14-day quarantine, Hanoimoi reported.

The majority of isolated cases are students and workers returning from the Netherlands, Poland, Germany, England, among others.

The citizens would receive medical checkups everyday and all necessities for daily use in the isolation center. Their feed ration is equal to officials and soldiers of the center.

The Military School has also set up a separate room for citizens who show signs of fever, and will be paid more attention to from doctors.

On March 13, Hanoi's authority made plans to ensure security and order at lockdown areas be it a quarter, a residential area or the whole city.

Chairman of the Hanoi People's Committee Nguyen Duc Chung asked governments of all levels in the city to prepare isolation plans as a way to prevent the spread of Covid-19.

Relevant agencies have to develop a backup plan for locations, isolation facilities, accommodation and necessities to ensure the well-being of isolated people in case of large-scale isolation.

Hanoi confirmed the first infection late on March 6 and since then 10 other cases have been detected in the city.

As of March 16, Vietnam reported 57 people positive with the coronavirus, of them, sixteen have recovered and been discharged from hospital.

HCM City opens additional hospital for Covid-19 treatment

The Can Gio Medical Centre in Can Gio District will be turned into a 300-bed hospital.

The HCM City Department of Health has decided to turn a local medical centre into a special infirmary for treating Covid-19 patients.

The hospital, which has been put into operation from today, March 16, receives people from quarantine areas with Covid-19 suspected symptoms such as fever and cough.

The hospital is divided into three areas namely for people who wait for being tested; those who are tested positive for Covid-19 and those who are tested negative for the virus.

Medical staff from Thu Duc Hospital, District 2 Hospital and the National Hospital for Tropical Diseases will be mobilised rotationally to support the treatment of this hospital.

Many other hospitals in HCM City also provide Covid-19 treatment, including the Hospital for Tropical Diseases, paediatrics hospitals and general hospitals in districts.

Covid- 19 official information provided on Zalo

Ho Chi Minh City launched a Zalo account providing official information related to Covid-19 and supporting local people in epidemic prevention.

Accordingly, Zalo subscribers can type “The Ho Chi Minh Department of Information and Communications” on search menu and click to “Interest” of official account (OA) to easily access the information.

Yesterday morning, the Zalo account of the Department of Information and Communications sent messages of medical declaration instructions, helping people to approach with health protection measures in case of high infection as well as mapping Covid-19 cases distribution.

Arrivals from epidemical areas or closely contacting with the infectious people can also complete the medical declaration on the Zalo account of the Department of Information and Communications via clicking “nCoV” and selecting “Medical Declaration”.

The mobile application will move to the medical declaration management system of Vienam General Department of Preventive Medicine.

The Zalo account integrated searching isolated concentration areas and hospitals in districts which help people with flu-like symptoms of Covid-19 to easily contact with the nearest healthcare centers for assistance as well as complete the isolation measures in order to limit spread of the epidemic.

In order to search isolation addresses, Zalo subscribers compose a text message with the syntax: CSCL [District Name], and the search results will appear below.

Good deeds amid coronavirus outbreaks

A medical worker of Tu Du Maternity Hospital’s testing faculty make cloth face masks

Amid the outbreak of new respiratory illness caused by a new coronavirus, many good deeds have been spreading in the community in Vietnam to cushion the impact of the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) epidemic.

Deeply touched by medical workers’ hard work to take care of COvid-19 patients in isolation wards, Duong Van Thuan and his colleagues working at International school FTF handed out 2,200 protective clothes and 60 packs of milk worth VND196 million (US$ 8,447 ) to the National Tropical Disease Hospital.

The gifts was an encouragement to medical workers who have been at the forefront of the fight against the coronavirus epidemic.

For over one month, medical workers of Tu Du Maternity Hospital’s testing faculty have made use of lunch break to make cloth face masks for medical workers who don’t treat Covid-19 patients. In next time, they will make more face masks in case that the disease widely spreads.

Elsewhere in the city, a group of volunteers have been making cloth face masks to give people gratis in an effort to help people prevent the spread of the disease. Other groups have bought hand sanitizers and face masks to freely distribute to laborers.

Lately, students and workers shared landlords’ announcement to lower the rent to help laborers cushion the impact of the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) epidemic.

Workers of Leather Shoe Hue Phong Company said the company has downsized and cut salary; as a result, workers’ income dropped drastically. Many of them had no choice but they had instant noodles or breads to save expenditure.

Many landlords therefore cut 30 percent of rent to help workers overcome the difficult time.

People also joined hand to consume agricultural products which were not exported. Pham Thi Bay and charitable groups had purchased 200 tons of watermelon for farmers in Krong Pa village of the Central Highlands Province of Gia Lai.

Good deeds will lift spirits and may save lives. VNN/VGP/SGGP/SGT/Hanoitimes