Ho Chi Minh City deploys training for school health workers according to the new Law on Medical Examination and Treatment
Implementing the new regulations of the Law on Medical Examination and Treatment, Ho Chi Minh City has implemented a professional training program for medical staff working at schools. This is an important step to help school medical staff continue to perform medical examination and treatment at schools within the appropriate scope after completing the course.
The Law on Medical Examination and Treatment No. 15/2023/QH15 was passed by the National Assembly and took effect from January 1, 2024, stipulating at Point b, Clause 2, Article 19 of the Law on Conditions for individuals to be allowed to examine and treat patients, stipulates that “…. medical staff working at medical agencies, units, and organizations without establishing medical examination and treatment facilities are only allowed to examine and treat patients within the scope of their activities and after completing the training program according to the professional and technical content prescribed by the Minister of Health”. On December 29, 2023, the Ministry of Health issued Circular No. 28/2023/TT-BYT to clearly stipulate the scope of professional activities and training content for medical staff not working at independent medical examination and treatment facilities, including school medical staff; at the same time, medical staff working at educational institutions are only allowed to continue to perform the contents related to medical examination and treatment as prescribed in Joint Circular No. 13/2016/TTLT-BYT-BGDĐT, Circular No. 33/2021/TT-BYT when completing professional training in medical examination and treatment before December 31, 2025.
Based on this Circular, the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Health, together with medical experts, has coordinated with the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Education and Training to develop a training program framework specifically for medical staff working at educational institutions in the city and issued Decision No. 3902/QD-SYT dated July 22, 2024 of the Department of Health.
The Department of Health has issued Official Dispatch No. 7703/SYT-TCCB dated August 8, 2024 to educational institutions in the health sector requesting the development, appraisal and issuance of training programs and materials suitable for each training subject, publicly announcing information about the training course on the training institution's website and sending a notification file to the Department of Health before organizing the training according to the regulations of the Ministry of Health in Circular No. 32/2023/TT-BYT dated December 31, 2023.
Up to now, the City has had 02 educational institutions announced by the Department of Health as qualified to organize training programs and continuously update medical knowledge in medical examination and treatment for medical staff at educational institutions according to the regulations of the Ministry of Health on the Health Sector Information Portal including: Pham Ngoc Thach University of Medicine and Nam Sai Gon Polytechnic College.
The Department of Education and Training has issued Official Dispatch 3571/SGDĐT-TCCB dated June 19, 2025 directing educational institutions in Ho Chi Minh City to send medical staff to register to participate in professional training programs, medical examination and treatment according to regulations at the facilities announced by the Department of Health.
On the morning of July 16, 2025, Pham Ngoc Thach University of Medicine held a closing ceremony and awarded certificates of completion of the training course to the first 309 medical staff from educational institutions in Ho Chi Minh City and several provinces participating in the program, including 256 medical staff with medical degrees and 53 medical staff without medical degrees. In order to ensure that all medical staff working at educational institutions in Ho Chi Minh City are trained in medical examination and treatment before December 31, 2025 to continue to perform medical examination and treatment within the appropriate scope in accordance with the provisions of the Law on Medical Examination and Treatment No. 15/2023/QH15, the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Health continues to call on educational institutions in the health sector or medical facilities with the function or task of training medical human resources according to regulations based on the program framework in Decision No. 3902/QD-SYT dated July 22, 2024 of the Department of Health to develop, appraise and promulgate training programs and materials suitable for each training subject, publicly announce information about the training course on the training institution's website and send notification documents to the Department of Health according to the instructions in Official Dispatch No. 7703/SYT-TCCB dated August 8, 2024 before organizing training according to the regulations of the Ministry of Health. The Department of Health continues to update the list of facilities qualified to organize training for medical staff working at educational institutions in Ho Chi Minh City on the Electronic Information Portal of the Health Sector so that educational institutions can choose to register to send medical staff in charge of school health work to attend training.
HO CHI MINH CITY DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH
