A doctor takes an ultra-sound of a woman in northern Nam Dinh Province. About 1,000 women in 10 districts are given reproductive health examination and consultation free of charge. (Photo: VNA)Hanoi (VNS/VNA) – Vietnam needs to develop a
policy to encourage husbands and wives-to-be to register for pre-marital health
tests, so that they will be more prepared both psychologically and physically
for their married life without causing burdens on themselves and society.
Do Thi Quynh Huong, Deputy Director of the General Department of
Population and Family Planning’s Population Structure and Quality Office, said
pre-marital health tests are the first forms of screening, which help create a
sustainable and happy married life and contribute to improving the quality of
the population.
Huong said many couples only focus on preparing financially for
their new life and pay little attention to health issues, especially
reproductive health.
Due to the lack of knowledge about reproductive healthcare,
especially screening and early detection of children’s diseases in the fetal
stage, many couples have had children with birth defects, brain hernia,
hydrocephalus, cerebral palsy, musculoskeletal defects, cleft lips,
malformations of limbs or genital organs.
It is worth mentioning that most of these issues can be prevented
if husbands and wives-to-be receive good premarital guidance and care for their
reproductive health.
“In developed countries, are mandatory.
However, in our country, many couples have not taken this issue seriously,” she
said.
“Many young people do not have sufficient information and
knowledge about pre-. Most are afraid of being caught
by their relatives and friends or worried that the disease discovered may ruin
their marriage plans while others think the issue of check-ups will likely be
misunderstood as lacking trust in the other. Therefore, the number of couples
going for pre-marital health check-ups remains very low.”
In remote and mountainous areas, this issue is even worse. Due to
customs and habits, many people do not fully understand the importance of
pre-marital health checks, and prenatal and newborn screening, leading to the birth
of children with birth defects.
It is estimated that each year, Vietnam has about 40,000 babies
born with birth defects. Common diseases are Down’s, Edwards syndrome, neural
tube defects, congenital hypothyroidism, G6PD enzyme deficiency, and severe
congenital hemolysis.
Huong said the purpose of pre-marital counseling and medical
examination is to prepare the knowledge and psychology for married sex life,
detect and treat early (if possible) some diseases that can affect sex
problems, pregnancy, and childbirth later, prepare wives with health conditions
for safe pregnancy and prevent birth defects for future children.
During the pre-marital health check-up, couples are given a
general health check and reproductive health check (ultrasound of the uterus,
ovaries, semen analysis), and assess the possibility of carrying the disease
gene based on their family’s medical history.
This will help avoid having children with some common genetic
diseases such as color blindness, thalassemia, Down’s, Turner or Edward
syndromes and screening for infectious diseases such as hepatitis B and HIV and
other sexually transmitted diseases.
Couples with detected reproductive health issues will be able to
take measures to increase their chances of pregnancy. In case one or both
partners are found to have certain conditions, they will be given timely
remedies, she stressed.
Huong said the appropriate time for pre-marital health tests for
couples should be at least six months before marriage.
‘Barriers must be lifted’
The Ministry of Health’s General Department of Population and
Family Planning has coordinated with localities to implement pre-marital
counseling and health examination in 63 cities and provinces since 2013.
Thousands of pre-marital counseling and health check-up clubs have been
established in 1,400 communes with the participation of millions of young
people.
These clubs provide information and advice on reproductive
healthcare and family planning and give health examinations for couples
preparing for marriage.
Reports on the results of the model in 2011-2015 showed that 78.8 %
of the participants had knowledge about reproductive healthcare and family
planning.
Huong said the results show that young men and women’s awareness
and practice of seeking counseling services and pre-marital health check-ups
remain low.
The service has not yet become a demand due to social prejudices,
cultural practices, the disparity in education level, and limited availability
of services.
In addition, the number of participants is limited due to the
nature of their work and the fear of revealing their identities. A shortage of
funding and weak coordination between the related agencies also leads to modest
results.
Resolution No 21-NQ/TW issued on October 25, 2017 set out targets
that 90 % of young men and women receive pre-marital counseling and health
check-ups by 2030.
Huong said a lot must be done to lift the barriers and achieve the
goals.
It is necessary to develop and expand the services to the
community and improve the capacity to provide services at health clinics.
Applying new techniques in screening, diagnosis and treatment of a
number of genetic and infectious diseases and developing mechanisms and
policies for private businesses to provide pre-marital counseling and health
check-up services should be done soon.
In particular, ministries and sectors need to focus on educating
and disseminating the issue to attract young people, especially those in
disadvantaged and ethnic minority areas, to take pre-marital health tests, she
said./.
Source: VietnamPlus
