Directive No. 06/2004/CT-BYT on ensuring healthcare services for the 5th ASEM High-Level Meeting issued by the Ministry of Health

DIRECTIVE

REGARDING THE ENSURING OF HEALTH SERVICES FOR THE 5TH ASIA-EUROPE MEETING (ASEM 5)

THE MINISTER OF HEALTH

The Fifth Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM 5), organized by Vietnam, will take place in October 2004 in Hanoi with the participation of many State Leaders' Delegations. This is the most important political conference of the year 2004 for our country.

To fulfill the Government's assigned tasks regarding the preparation and service provision for the ASEM 5 Conference, to strengthen disease prevention efforts, food safety, and emergency response organization, and to protect and care for the health of delegates attending the Conference, the Minister of Health issues the following directive:

1. Ensuring environmental hygiene and disease prevention

a) Strengthening environmental hygiene inspection, disease prevention, and epidemic surveillance, particularly avian influenza, SARS, dengue fever, etc., to detect early cases and promptly handle initial cases at all levels, border gates, international airports, conference venues, and meeting rooms.

b) Ensuring environmental hygiene, providing clean water, and preventing flies, mosquitoes, rats, cockroaches, and other disease-transmitting vectors in the areas of restaurants and hotels serving the Conference in Hanoi and provinces hosting international delegations.

c) Organizing on-call disease control teams and strictly implementing information and reporting on epidemics according to Decision No. 4880/2002/QĐ-BYT dated December 6, 2002, of the Minister of Health. During the Conference period, daily reports on disease prevention activities must be submitted.

d) Ensuring human resources, equipment, medicines, chemicals, and necessary means to be ready to address issues related to environmental hygiene and disease prevention.

Environmental hygiene and epidemic surveillance work must be continuously conducted before, during, and after the Conference.

The Preventive Medicine Department and AIDS Prevention Department shall develop plans to direct, organize specialized training, inspect, and urge units to properly implement these tasks.

2. Ensuring food safety and hygiene

a) The Steering Committee implementing Directive 08/1999/CT-TTg dated April 15, 1999, of the Prime Minister in provinces and centrally-administered cities (hereinafter referred to as provinces) shall instruct the Health Departments to cooperate with relevant agencies to strengthen inspections of food safety from the initial procurement stage through transportation, storage, processing, and consumption. Promote activities ensuring food safety, street food hygiene, and link them with campaigns building healthy and cultural families, villages, and neighborhoods.

b) Restaurants and hotels serving the ASEM 5 Conference must strictly comply with regulations on facility hygiene, have sources of clean and safe food supply, maintain hygiene during food processing, equipment, and utensil hygiene, health check-ups, personal hygiene, and food inspection procedures to ensure food safety for international delegations attending the Conference.

c) Organize three-step food inspection (before raw material entry, before food entry, before processing, and before consumption) at restaurants throughout the Conference service period; prepare and be ready to handle mass food poisoning incidents and foodborne diseases. All cases of food poisoning (if any) must be handled and reported promptly.

The Food Safety and Hygiene Control Department shall be responsible for directing, promoting, guiding, organizing specialized training, inspecting, urging units and localities to implement these tasks, including before, during, and after the Conference period.

3. Ensuring protection and healthcare for delegates and disaster preparedness and response

a) Develop plans to ensure on-call emergency services to protect and care for the health of officials, staff, and personnel of domestic and international delegations, invited guests, and foreign journalists at conference activity locations, accommodation sites, and build contingency plans for disaster scenarios, including mass poisoning incidents.

b) Ensure sufficient stock of medicines, equipment, tools, and transport means at on-call emergency service points. Medical staff selected to serve must meet professional requirements, demonstrate responsibility, show initiative, and cooperate well during the service period.

Hospitals in Hanoi must prepare adequate human resources, facilities, and beds to be ready to receive patients and participate in emergency services upon mobilization orders.

The Treatment Department shall be responsible for directing inspections of hospitals to fulfill the requirements of the Conference Health Service Management Board; organizing specialized training, preparing medicine stocks, blood supplies, medical equipment, and transport means; developing plans to ensure readiness to respond to possible situations.

4. Responsibility for implementation

The Conference Health Service Management Board is the focal point for monitoring, tracking, and reporting to the Minister during the implementation of this Directive.

The Treatment Department, the Preventive Medicine Department, and the Food Safety and Hygiene Control Department shall be responsible for directing and supervising implementation according to their assigned functions and responsibilities. Departments, Bureaus, the Ministry Office, and the Inspectorate shall coordinate in directing the implementation of related tasks.

The Health Departments of Hanoi and provinces with international border gates and hosting delegations from countries visiting and working there shall be responsible for developing plans for approval by the provincial People's Committees and organizing implementation to ensure environmental hygiene, disease prevention, food safety, and emergency response, disaster prevention, and handling as stipulated in Points 1, 2, and 3 of this Directive.

Health Departments in provinces not hosting the Conference should continue to maintain and promote results in environmental hygiene, disease prevention, and food safety; strengthen epidemiological surveillance to prevent disease spread; launch environmental sanitation campaigns, beautify streets, and be ready to provide professional support when mobilized.

The time for organizing the 5th Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM 5) is approaching, therefore, relevant units must urgently organize the implementation. The Management Board for Health Services for the 5th ASEM Meeting is responsible for monitoring, urging, inspecting, and reporting to the Minister of Health on the results of implementing this Directive until the end of the Meeting.