U.S. CDC Official Identifies Health Risks in Vietnam amid Complex Epidemics

Dr. Eric Dziuban, Country Director for U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Vietnam, has highlighted some health challenges in Vietnam amidst the complexity of multiple concurrent epidemics in his exclusive interview with the local Dan Tri (Intellectuals) newspaper.

The emergence and spread of new infectious diseases are major threats to current global health security, the U.S. CDC official said, affirming that the U.S. government, through the CDC, is collaborating with Vietnam's Ministry of Health to monitor and respond to threats such as avian influenza, drug-resistant infectious diseases, vector-borne diseases like dengue, and longstanding health issues like tuberculosis and HIV.

The pandemic has impacted vaccination rates for many diseases in Vietnam, Dr. Eric Dziuban pointed out, pledging that the U.S. CDC will continue to work with the Vietnamese health ministry to ensure swift vaccination for children and adults to raise coverage rates above pre-pandemic levels.

Vietnam should enhance its surveillance to detect outbreaks promptly, including improving guidelines for detecting influenza and other respiratory viruses, and build action plans to allow local authorities to use budget resources flexibly during outbreaks, the U.S. health expert suggested.

The CDC has been strengthening Vietnam's capacity in four core areas, namely (i) disease surveillance, (ii) laboratory networks, (iii) human resource development, and (iv) emergency response capabilities, he shared.

For over 25 years, the U.S.CDC has partnered with Vietnam to prevent, detect, and respond to health threats, he noted, believing that sustaining success requires continuous efforts in human resource development, early diagnosis and reporting of outbreaks, and addressing vaccination rate challenges. He affirmed that these are achievable goals and the U.S. CDC is proud to support Vietnam in realizing them.

(Dan Tri)