By September 30, all unlicensed medical facilities must be suspended.

On the afternoon of July 10, the Provincial People's Committee held a conference to evaluate the results of implementing Directive No. 03/CT-UBND dated January 29, 2018 of the Nghe An Provincial People's Committee on continuing to strengthen the management of non-public medical and pharmaceutical practice activities in Nghe An province.

Comrade Le Minh Thong - Member of the Provincial Party Standing Committee, Vice Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee chaired the conference. Attending the conference were representatives of leaders of relevant departments, branches and sectors; leaders of the People's Committee and Heads of Health Departments of districts, cities and towns.

The inspection team of the Department of Health inspected an unlicensed medical facility in Hung Nguyen district. Photo: Thanh Chung

To rectify illegal medical and pharmaceutical practices that are harmful to public health as well as other violations in this field, on January 29, 2018, the Provincial People's Committee issued Directive No. 03/CT-UBND on continuing to strengthen the management of non-public medical and pharmaceutical practices in Nghe An province.

Nghe An Department of Health has established an Inspection Team to implement Directive No. 03/CT-UBND. 21/21 districts, cities and towns have issued Plans and Decisions to establish Interdisciplinary Teams to inspect the implementation of Directive No. 03/CT-UBND dated January 29, 2018 of the Provincial People's Committee in the district's management area. These inspection teams conduct a review of the total number of private medical and pharmaceutical establishments, handle violations, and suspend violating establishments.

After nearly 6 months of implementation, the total number of licensed medical and pharmaceutical establishments is now 2,432. The total number of unlicensed medical and pharmaceutical establishments reviewed is 685. Through inspection and handling, 529 establishments have been suspended. As of June 15, 2018, there are still 156 unlicensed establishments operating.

Health Department leaders report on the implementation results of Directive 03. Photo: Thanh Chung

Localities that still have many establishments operating without a license are: Thanh Chuong has 67 establishments; Do Luong has 15 establishments; Vinh City has 15 establishments; Dien Chau has 16 establishments.

The Department of Health inspected 31 facilities and administratively sanctioned 17 facilities with a fine of VND384 million.Suspend the operation of 4 illegal establishmentsThe districts have administratively fined 102 establishments, totaling more than 470 million VND, and suspended 529 establishments operating without a license.

The number of establishments and the total amount of money that the Department of Health and districts handled and fined increased more than 4 times compared to 2017... However, there are still some districts that do not inspect and fine, such as Thanh Chuong and Do Luong; there are no drastic measures to handle establishments that do not have a license to operate in the management area, leading to some establishments being suspended and then reopening.

At the conference, delegates focused on analyzing the causes and reasons why there are still many unlicensed establishments; solutions to handle and eliminate unlicensed establishments operating in the management area.

Leaders of Nghi Loc District People's Committee shared experiences in closing down unlicensed establishments. Photo: Thanh Chung

Accordingly, the main reason is that some districts have not strictly and resolutely handled violations, so the number of unlicensed medical establishments is high. In addition, the assignment of responsibilities to the commune level is not clear. Most communes, wards and towns still avoid responsibility, do not clearly demonstrate the role of state management, and conduct general inspections without imposing penalties. Some relatives and medical staff at hospitals participate in unlicensed medical activities.

Human resources and specialized inspection teams at the Department of Health are still lacking; especially the District Health Department is lacking in human resources (some districts only have 1-2 staff), affecting the work of advising the District People's Committee to implement the Directive.

In this meeting, local leaders with many unlicensed establishments were appointed to speak and promised to rectify and strengthen the management of non-public medical and pharmaceutical practices.

In his concluding remarks at the conference, comrade Le Minh Thong stated: The implementation of Directive 03 of the Provincial People's Committee has not met the requirements. The actual number of unlicensed establishments is still greater than the number of establishments that have been reviewed and reported. The punishment of violating establishments is not strict, there is a lack of attention from a part of state agencies, and there is the complicity of some medical staff.

Vice Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee Le Minh Thong stated: The number of illegal establishments operating in reality is much higher than the reported figures. Photo: Thanh Chung

To ensure healthy non-public medical and pharmaceutical activities, from the province to the commune, ward and town levels, we must show determination. For qualified establishments, we must facilitate the granting of operating licenses. For establishments that violate the law, we must strictly and thoroughly handle them. The Department of Health and localities need to conduct regular inspections. Commune, ward and town levels need to continuously monitor and manage.

In the management of non-public medical practice activities, assign responsibility to leaders; inspect and handle signs of violations by cadres and party members; and include them in the year-end emulation title classification.

The Vice Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee assigned the Department of Finance to guide units and localities in using fines for inspection and examination activities; assigned the responsibility to localities to suspend all unlicensed medical and pharmaceutical establishments by September 30, 2018./.