Politburo member, Secretary of the Party Central Committee and Chairman of the Commission for Information, Education and Mass Mobilisation Trinh Van Quyet (front row, fifth from left), together with delegates, participate in a walk after the launch of All People’s Health Day in Hanoi on April 5. Photo: VNA  

The Party Central Committee’s Commission for Information, Education and Mass Mobilisation, in coordination with the Ministry of Health, organised a meeting in Hanoi on April 5 to launch All People’s Health Day (April 7) under the theme of proactive disease prevention for a healthy Vietnam.

The launch marked the first year the activity has been implemented in a coordinated manner nationwide. Members of the public were able to visit free screening areas, receive nutritional advice, participate in mass exercise performances, enjoy artistic programmes, and join a walk in response following the ceremony.

Addressing the event, Politburo member, Secretary of the Party Central Committee and Chairman of the Commission for Information, Education and Mass Mobilisation Trinh Van Quyet stated that proactive disease prevention is not merely a medical solution, but a responsibility of society as a whole and a requirement for national development in the new period.

He called for raising awareness across society, emphasising that such prevention is a long-term strategy associated with the responsibility of each individual, family, and the entire political system. Every citizen should take the initiative in physical exercise, maintain proper nutrition, adopt a scientific lifestyle, control risk factors, and undergo regular health check-ups.

According to Minister of Health Dao Hong Lan, the health sector is facing numerous challenges, including increasingly complex disease patterns, the growing burden of non-communicable diseases such as cardiovascular conditions, cancer, hypertension, and diabetes; pressures from population ageing; the impacts of climate change on public health; as well as issues relating to mental health, improper nutrition, and the persistent risks of emerging infectious diseases.

Disease prevention is not solely the task of the health sector but the responsibility of the entire political system and society, with the people as the central actors, she stressed.

Associate Prof. Dr Nguyen Anh, Director of Huu Nghi Hospital, noted that the Politburo’s selection of April 7 as Vietnam’s Health Day, coinciding with World Health Day, demonstrates that the country is aligning and integrating with global efforts on major international issues.

Providing further information on activities at the event, Nguyen Huu Tu, Standing Vice President and General Secretary of the Central Committee of the Vietnam Young Physicians’ Association, said that the event mobilised more than 300 doctors from 19 central-level hospitals, along with modern medical equipment systems, to provide screening, diagnosis, and health consultations for the public.

Notably, around 8,000 people registered for health check-ups and consultations within the framework of the programme. This represents a coordinated effort between the health sector and social forces, including the participation of the business community, Tu added./.