Universities advised to offer hospital administration courses

Speaking at a conference held at the University
of Medicine and Pharmacy in Ho Chi Minh City, they said the national medical
system has been reformed, with many hospitals getting financial autonomy, and
is a very important facet in this reform.  

Assoc Prof Dr Tang Chi Thuong, Deputy Director
of the HCM City Department of Health, said many hospital managers in the city
want to learn administration since they did not have the opportunity to
learn in the past.

He said a good hospital chief needs leadership,
planning and operational skills, financial management capabilities, and how to
ensure quality and patients’ safety.

Prof Dr Nguyen Van Tap, head of the University
of Medicine and Pharmacy’s quality assurance division, said
plays an important role in ensuring healthcare services reach “80-85 percent of
quality.”

In a market-driven system, quality is a decisive
factor in the survival and development of hospitals, he said, adding that quality
management helps meet patients and medical staff’s demands.

Vu Huu Duc of the HCM City Open University said
public hospitals now have greater financial autonomy and so need to know about
finance, including how to manage cash flows, financial leverage and others. They
also need the skills required to manage human resources, he said.

Many public hospitals are currently facing a
shortage of human resources, and so it is important for them to have proper
policies to attract talent, which is a difficult task, he said.

Moreover, many are overcrowded, leading to
working pressure for their medical staff and unhappiness among patients.

They also have to deal with government
authorities and co-ordinate with the Vietnam Social Security to get medical
insurance claims, he said.

They need to have strategies to adopt IT and
advanced technologies to develop and attract patients, Duc added.-VNS/VNA