Journey to keep the rhythm of life on the outpost island

Lying across the 17th parallel, 27km from the mainland, Con Co Island has an area of 230.39 hectares, with 24 households and about 500 people regularly present on the island. Con Co Military-Civilian Medical Center was built according to the military-civilian medical model, under the Department of Health of Quang Tri province. It is a public service unit with the function of medical examination, treatment, and preventive medicine for the people and armed forces in Con Co Special Zone.

Having been with the center since its inception, Dr. Le Van Danh, Director of the Con Co Military-Civilian Medical Center, shared: In the early days of its establishment, the unit faced many difficulties because of the lack of medical examination and treatment equipment, few staff, and Con Co did not have a hospital or specialized doctors like on the mainland. We were doctors, nurses, caregivers, and relatives of patients.

Overcoming initial difficulties, up to now, the Con Co Military-Civilian Medical Center has 12 staff, including 8 civilian staff and 4 military medical staff; including 2 CKI doctors, 1 general practitioner, 4 nurses, 5 staff including midwives, pharmacists, and laboratory technicians. The medical network has been invested and strengthened, and equipment is guaranteed with ultrasound machines, electrocardiogram machines, testing machines, etc.

Staff of the Con Co Military-Civilian Medical Center dispense medicine and provide health advice to fishermen - Photo: LD

Vice Chairman of the People's Committee of Con Co Special Zone Pham Thanh Tuan said: "Health care on the island is not only about taking care of the health of the people and soldiers, but also a solid spiritual support for the socio -economic development of the special zone. Without health care, people would not dare to go to sea, and could not feel secure living and working long-term on the island. The staff of the Con Co Military-Civilian Medical Center always try their best, overcoming harsh conditions to serve the people with a sense of responsibility and medical ethics. The local government always coordinates closely with the center, creating the best conditions to build a safe, friendly, and quality medical environment, contributing to maintaining the stability and sustainable development of the island."

Mr. Nguyen Van Trai, a fisherman in Hue who regularly fishes at Con Co fishing ground, shared: “We fishermen are drifting at sea, and when we unfortunately get sick or have an accident, it is very difficult to access medical services. Thanks to the Con Co Military-Civilian Medical Center, many emergency cases have been promptly treated, and our fishermen's lives have been guaranteed. For us, the Military-Civilian Medical Center is truly a fulcrum in the middle of the ocean.”

For households who have lived on the island for a long time, the presence of the Con Co Military-Civilian Medical Center is even more meaningful. Ms. Nguyen Thi Hoai, in residential area No. 1 of Con Co Special Zone, shared: “When I first came here to live, I was very worried because my child was young, and medical conditions were not as good as on the mainland. But now, every time my child is sick, a doctor comes to my house to examine, advise, and promote disease prevention methods. Vaccination work is also more concerned, so I feel very secure living and attached to the island.”

Having been with the Con Co Military-Civilian Medical Center since the early days, Dr. Le Van Danh has experienced many emergency cases at sea to rescue fishermen in distress. Many accidents at sea required the mobilization of fishing control ships or fishing boats to the scene for timely rescue. During the 10 years of work, there have been many touching stories written in the midst of the vast waves.

Doctor Danh recalled: “At that time, around 1:30 p.m., it was raining heavily and the waves were windy and foggy when the unit heard the officers of Con Co Border Post report that there was an emergency. The patient had a stroke. At that time, the patient's fishing boat was about 26 nautical miles northeast of Con Co Island. Faced with the patient's life-threatening condition, the emergency medical team, the Con Co Special Zone Military-Civilian Medical Center and the border guards on the island mobilized fishing boats anchored at the port to rescue the person. After more than 2 hours of struggling with big waves and strong winds, our ship approached the fishing boat in distress and immediately deployed timely first aid measures, thanks to which the patient overcame the critical condition.”

Health check-up for pregnant women at the Military-Civilian Medical Center of Con Co Special Zone - Photo: LD

National health target programs are always deployed and implemented synchronously on the island. Over the past 10 years, the center has examined 4,648 patients (average 460/time/year). Propaganda work on disease prevention and control; expanded vaccination; prevention and control of malaria, tuberculosis, child malnutrition... are always given attention and implemented periodically.

The efforts of the Con Co Military-Civilian Medical Center have been recognized with many noble awards: Certificate of Merit from the Ministry of Health for the military-civilian medical model; Certificate of Merit from the Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee for Covid-19 epidemic prevention; social security work... In particular, during his visit to Con Co in October 2024, General Secretary To Lam praised and acknowledged the achievements of the collective of cadres, civil servants and employees of the Con Co Military-Civilian Medical Center; at the same time, presented the center with a support package to build official houses and many modern medical equipment such as digital X-ray machines, Doppler color ultrasound machines, defibrillators, electric cars for emergency and patient transportation...

Thanks to that, the center has been able to improve its capacity for basic medical examination and treatment, routine testing, diagnostic imaging and initial emergency care, contributing to significantly reducing the number of patients being transferred to unnecessary hospitals...

Deputy Director of the Department of Health Nguyen Xuan Dung said: “The health sector highly appreciates the role and dedication of the medical staff, military and civilian medical staff on the island. The Con Co Military-Civilian Medical Center not only does a good job in professional work on island medicine, but is also a shock force in political tasks, national defense and security, natural disaster and epidemic prevention, contributing to maintaining sovereignty over the islands and building the special zone to develop more and more.”

Le Dung - Hoang Loan

Source: https://baoquangtri.vn/xa-hoi/202510/hanh-trinh-giu-nhip-song-noi-dao-tien-tieu-ca744ea/