Two hemodialysis machines donated to Vietnam-Cuba friendship hospital

The Poor Patient Sponsor Association of Quang Binh province on January 24 held a ceremony to transfer two hemodialysis machines to the Vietnam-Cuba friendship hospital in Dong Hoi city, the central province of Quang Binh.

The machines worth 560 million VND (22,750 USD) were bought with donation from organisations and individuals and the association’s fund to help poor patients access healthcare services more easily, said the association’s president Nguyen Thi Thanh Huong.

Nguyen Duc Cuong, Director of the hospital, said that nearly 250 patients with chronic kidney failure received treatment at the hospital.

However, the hospital only has 31 hemodialysis machines, most of which have been used for more than 10 years.

In September 1973, Cuba’s leader Fidel Castro visited the newly liberated areas of Quang Tri despite numerous dangers. The leader decided to help Vietnam build a general hospital in Dong Hoi of Quang Binh province, just north of Quang Tri, offering treatment to residents not only in the locality but also to neighbouring localities. Its construction began in May 1974 and the 462-bed medical facility was put into operation in September 1981.

Now, the hospital has more than 1,000 beds and creates close to 850 jobs.