Washington, DC, and Addis Ababa, 15 August 2024 – A delegation of eight professionals involved with AIHA’s Twinning Partnership Program to Strengthen Primary Health Care in Ethiopia recently wrapped up a professional learning exchange in Hanoi and Hue in Vietnam.
Representatives from Ethiopia’s Federal Ministry of Health, the International Institute for Primary Health Care – Ethiopia, the University of Queensland, Primary Health Care (PHC) Hubs established through the program at Jimma University and Jigjiga University, and AIHA were among the participants in the five-day professional exchange that concluded August 2.
“Ethiopia can learn so much from Vietnam’s PHC system to help advance universal health coverage, enhance pandemic preparedness, and build climate change resilience,” said Dr. Yibeltal Alemu, Associate Professor of Public Health at the University of Queensland and coordinator of the AIHA twinning partnership.
During the learning exchange, the delegation met with officials from Vietnam’s Health Strategy and Policy Institute (HSPI), the National Institute for Hygiene and Epidemiology (NMIE), and Hue University’s Family Medicine Center. The group also visited Thuy Phuong Community Health Center and Huong Thuy District Health Center to get a first-hand look at rural PHC practices.
The AIHA delegation with experts from Hue University of Medicine and Pharmacy.
AIHA arranged this professional exchange, which was designed to help the IPHC-E and its PHC Hubs learn about the history of primary care in Vietnam and how the country is currently providing PHC services as it seeks to achieve universal health coverage. The study tour provided the team with an excellent opportunity to identify best practices that can be adapted and applied to the Ethiopian context, and to learn about potential implementation challenges and how Vietnam worked to overcome them. The exchange also offered an opportunity for experts from the Ministry of Health and IPHC-E to share Ethiopia’s PHC experiences and build professional relationships with their Vietnamese counterparts.
IPHC-E Director of Programs Dr. Anteneh Zewdie presents an overview of Ethiopia’s efforts to strengthen PHC services at Hue University of Medicine and Pharmacy.
Explaining that Ethiopia can really enhance its PHC system by adopting Vietnam’s Family Health Team approach, which emphasizes community-based, multidisciplinary care, continuous training, and the integration of digital health technologies like electronic medical records and telemedicine, Dr. Yibeltal said, “Vietnam’s successful implementation of a comprehensive health insurance system and a robust network of community health stations offers a model for expanding coverage and improving PHC accessibility in Ethiopia. Strengthening disease surveillance, rapid response, and community engagement can also enhance Ethiopia’s pandemic preparedness.”
Additionally, integrating environmental health programs, building a climate-resilient health infrastructure, and fostering cross-sector collaboration are key strategies that can help Ethiopia enhance the availability, accessibility, equity, and quality of health services, which will help move the country closer to universal health coverage and overall health security, Dr. Yibeltal stressed.
The AIHA delegation visited two rural health facilities during the tour, including Thuy Phuong Community Health Center.
IPHC-E Director of Programs Dr. Anteneh Zewdie summed up the experience: “We had a great visit to learn from the Vietnamese primary health care system. It was a bird’s eye view into how the PHC system can be designed as countries advance from low income to middle income. It also showcased the critical role of primary health care in addressing the impact of climate change and responding to pandemics.”
This study tour was conducted under the aegis of an AIHA project to strengthen the IPHC-E’s capacity to serve as both a national and regional resource for the delivery of quality primary health care service for essential, curative, and preventive services in Ethiopia. The project was launched in November 2020 and is supported by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF). Click here to learn more.
For more information, please contact: Kidest Hailu, Country Director, AIHA Ethiopia Tel: +251 116 188 932 E-mail: khailu@aiha-et.com