Vietnam

Cataract blindness is a significant public health issue in Vietnam. Lack of adequately trained and equipped doctors and limited investment in eye health has led to a backlog of 800,000 cases with a further 82,000 people becoming cataract blind each year.

The tragedy is that cataract blindness is a treatable condition and exacerbating the backlog is the limited access to services people have. While more than 75% of Vietnam's population live in rural areas, most eye care facilities are concentrated in urban centres.

Lack of access to these basic services has led to a spiralling effect for many people living with cataract blindness, as they face increased personal obstacles and a dependence on their families.

Since 1993 The Fred Hollows Foundation has been working in the poorer provinces of Vietnam to treat and prevent cataract blindness.

Leading the Vietnam Blindness Prevention Program is Dr Huynh Tan Phuc who joined The Foundation in 2003. Dr Phuc is responsible for all areas of program management in Vietnam, including planning, implementation and reporting.  

Most importantly, Dr Phuc represents The Foundation and has developed strong relationships with all local partners, including the Ministry of Health, the Vietnam National Institute of Ophthalmology, provincial authorities and other eye health centres.

Dr Phuc sees his position as a challenging role which has led him back to his career as an ophthalmologist. Dr Phuc initially trained as a Doctor of Medicine at Hue Medical University where he specialised in surgery. 

After securing his first posting as a general surgeon at the main hospital in Da Nang City, an interest in ophthalmology soon led him to study Primary Eye Care and Community Eye Surgery at the Ophthalmology Centre in Ho Chi Minh City.

Dr Phuc then returned to the hospital at Da Nang City to work as a surgeon and chief of the eye department. Whilst working at the hospital, he became involved in some additional projects, including a nutrition project funded by World Vision.

Through this project he gained skills and experience in project strategy and implementation, including supervision, report preparation and liaison with funding bodies. 

Recognising Dr Phuc's broader skills, he was then employed to manage other projects throughout Vietnam which covered areas as diverse as blindness prevention, midwife health training, urban nutrition, child survival, flood relief and HIV/AIDS.

Most of these projects involved partnerships with other non-government organisations and Dr Phuc soon gained a sound reputation for his project management and communication skills. As a result he attended several international conferences and training workshops.

In late 2001, Dr Phuc was promoted to National Health Coordinator in which he provided leadership, mentoring and technical advice to health programs operating throughout the country.

Dr Phuc joined The Fred Hollows Foundation as Country Manager for the Vietnam Blindness Prevention Program in 2003, bringing his community health, program planning and ophthalmology experience with him.

Now Dr Phuc has set up a national office in Da Nang city, in the Central of Vietnam where he works with a team of 12 staff. The Vietnam Blindness Prevention Program is currently being undertaken in the provinces of Quang Tri, Binh Dinh, Phu Yen, Quang Nam, Vinh Long, Dak Lak, Quang Ngai, Thua Thien Hue and in Da Nang City. 

According to national statistics, more than 100,000 cataract operations are performed in Vietnam each year, compared to 100 a year when The Foundation first began working in the country.

Since 1993, the Vietnam Blindness Prevention Program has made significant progress towards increasing the number of people with restored sight in Vietnam.