Proposal to extend periodic growth monitoring to the end of primary school

On the afternoon of October 23, the discussion session at Group 15 (including the National Assembly Delegation of Phu Tho and Dak Lak provinces) on the draft Law on Disease Prevention recorded the opinions of delegates suggesting expanding the subjects of periodic growth monitoring to the end of primary school; at the same time, adding ethnic minority children with very few people to the list of children receiving nutritional rehabilitation support.

More attention to school health

Commenting on the draft Law, National Assembly Deputy Le Dao An Xuan ( Dak Lak ) agreed with the orientation of "early care, from a distance, from birth"; at the same time, emphasized the need to pay more attention to school health.

The delegates said that medical work at schools has not received enough attention, especially the work of gender counseling and psychology in school education is currently "left open"; the school medical team has not been periodically trained so their capacity and expertise are still very limited. Therefore, it is necessary to supplement regulations on training and capacity building for this force.

National Assembly Deputy Le Dao An Xuan (Dak Lak) gives comments on the draft Law on Disease Prevention. Photo: Xuan Quy

Commenting on regulations on child nutrition and school nutrition, delegates pointed out that current regulations only focus on monitoring children under 6 years old; meanwhile, primary school children are almost left to the family and community.

The delegates also proposed to expand the subjects of periodic growth monitoring to the end of primary school; at the same time, add children of ethnic minorities with very few people (16 ethnic groups under 10,000 people) to the list of children receiving nutritional rehabilitation support. Thereby, meeting the goal of early and remote disease prevention and ensuring comprehensive development for the country's future generations.

Research on re-establishing a regional Center for Disease Control

Regarding the responsibilities of agencies, organizations and individuals in the use of vaccines and biological products in Article 24, delegate Le Dao An Xuan suggested that it is necessary to add the responsibility of the state in inspecting, evaluating, ensuring quality and suitability in the conditions of Vietnam. At the same time, it is necessary to control vaccines right from the input stage as well as publicize the ingredients before use, and the properties of vaccines before large-scale vaccination.

Meanwhile, National Assembly Deputy Nguyen Van Manh (Phu Tho) expressed concerns about the organization directly participating in disease prevention and control in the current context. The delegate said that after implementing the 2-level local government model, according to the guidance of the Ministry of Health, the provincial general hospital system will still be maintained to ensure service to the people. However, in the field of disease prevention and preventive medicine, the core agency, the Center for Disease Control (CDC) of provinces and cities, is required to merge into a common unit.

National Assembly Deputy Nguyen Van Manh (Phu Tho) speaks. Photo: Xuan Quy

According to the delegate, this arrangement has revealed many difficulties and shortcomings in practice; especially in epidemic prevention and control. In fact, during the Covid-19 epidemic, localities with a rapid response CDC system and synchronous implementation of solutions have achieved high epidemic prevention and control efficiency, limited damage and controlled the situation well. On the contrary, merging many CDCs into one focal point causes the leadership apparatus to lack direct management, and the geographical distance is far, leading to difficulties in rapid response and delays in implementing epidemic prevention measures. Along with that, many officials, civil servants and public employees at CDCs in the provinces have resigned, causing a shortage of human resources, affecting the capacity to respond when an epidemic occurs.

From that reality, delegate Nguyen Van Manh suggested that it is necessary to soon study the plan to re-establish the Centers for Disease Control in the previous provinces, in order to proactively shorten the response time when an epidemic occurs. This will help to reasonably allocate resources, optimize medical equipment and human resources, effectively support the system of commune and ward health stations in implementing preventive medicine and provide guidance on disease prevention techniques at the grassroots level. Therefore, the drafting agency should study and supplement the content on the organizational structure of agencies participating in disease prevention and control in the draft Law, the delegate suggested.

Source: https://daibieunhandan.vn/kien-nghi-mo-rong-theo-doi-tang-truong-dinh-ky-den-het-bac-tieu-hoc-10392675.html