Project News

Biosafety workshop was organized at Pasteur Institute of Ho Chi Minh City (PI-HCMC) on 22 July for review of so far project activities in the southern region, and planning of expected project activities up to the end with a number of stakeholders. A total of 26 participants attended it from PI-HCMC, 3 southern pilot PCPMs, Japanese experts, WHO Vietnam Office in Ho Chi Minh City and General Department of Preventive Medicine, Ministry of Health (GDPM MoH).

Dr. Cao Van, vice-director of PI-HCMC, made an opening speech and explained the purpose and outline of the workshop. And then Dr. Van Tuan, a National Professional Officer of WHO Vietnam in HCMC, gave a lecture on the main scheme of WHO for global public health, IHR: International Health Regulation (2005) and Asian public health, APSED: Asia Pacific Strategy for Emerging Diseases (2010) where WHO WPRO regards the capacity strengthening of laboratory diagnosis in Vietnam as important and expects the project to support establishment of biosafety, laboratory network and quality management in Vietnam. In succession, Dr. Xuan Tung from GDPM MoH explained perspective of strategies against infectious diseases in Vietnam and expressed anticipation that the project might support the activities meeting to the governmental strategies. In the next section, Dr. Phuong Lan presented the outline of project activities in Vietnam, especially the southern region under the direction of PI-HCMC. Next, selected from GMT-targeted pathogens, Dr. Hoan Vu and Dr. Thanh Long presented the outcome of GMT/Cholera and GMT/Avian Influenza, respectively, so far supported by the project, and the perspective of collaboration between NIHE and NIID for the promotion of GMT/biosafety training.

In the afternoon, we reviewed the past activities and points to be accomplished of the project and directors of 3 southern pilot PCPMs (Can Tho City, Lon An and Tien Giang) presented several points to be improved in each region, and we discussed what has to be performed by the end of the project, based on the draft prepared by Dr. Cao Van and advice from a Japanese expert, Dr. Shinohara in biosafety and facility maintenance. We reached to the consensus that the project is encouraged to strengthen the activities of GMT training and TOT activities in the training of GMT and biosafety in the southern area. Furthermore, we discussed the planning after the end of the project, based on the draft prepared by Dr. Cao Van including the expectation from 3 pilot PCPMs. In conclusion, we made a consensus that PI-HCMC might have a wide BSL-3 facility beside the mobile BSL-3 for establishment of future rapid laboratory diagnosis system in the southern area of Vietnam in order to strengthen the laboratory network and quality management by expanding biosafety training to nationwide including the southern area with TOT training. Workshop was closed with reaching to the conclusion that we should continue to make a definite plan covering necessities and requirements from each PCPM. This workshop provided a good opportunity to all of stakeholders related with the project in order to make a consensus about the past, the present and the future of the project activities in the southern area.

Biosafety workshop in PI-HCMC

All of participants of biosafety workshop in PI-HCMC