Bringing Health Care to Vietnam

Rural villages in Vietnam rarely have access to affordable health-care, but a group of 36 American doctors, dentists, nurses, public health professionals, and students travelled through the Vietnamese jungles during June to provide their free services in some of the most remote areas of the country.

The 18-day mission, arranged by the nonprofit Vietnam Village Health organization, brought together volunteers from all over the United States, including Dr. Annabelle Carnice of San Ramon and Dr. Henry Vu of Pleasanton.

For Carnice, it was her first time participating in such a mission to a developing country, though she had wanted to do one for many years.

“It’s always been my dream to do a mission,” she said. “I just think it feels good to help others in a meaningful way, and it was something I could do to help.” 

On the other hand, Vu previously had been part of a group of doctors that completed a mission to the South American Amazon, but this was his first time volunteering his services in Vietnam, a country close to his heart.

Vu was born and raised in Vietnam before moving to the United States as a teenager. He has visited the country since then, but he cherished the opportunity to go back in June to help the most impoverished of the population. 

“Personally, I am able to go back to the motherland and help all the people who really need it, so it’s definitely a bonus for me to do it in Vietnam,” he said. 

During the 18-day trip, the group of volunteers treated about 3000 people from multiple villages, each predetermined by the VVH in conjunction with Vietnamese nuns and priests.

Vu said that although the VVH is not a religious group, it relies on the information provided by Catholic convents and churches in Vietnam because these are the institutions that work with the impoverished on a daily basis and know which areas need the most help.

Some of these areas that the volunteers visited were deep in the jungle, requiring plane, bus, and boat to reach.

Because the VVH is nonprofit and does not receive government funding, almost all the trip’s expenses, including transportation, were paid for by private donations and the volunteers’ own money. 

Even the approximately 1000 pounds of medical supplies that were brought along for the mission came from the volunteers’ own donations.

When the volunteers arrived in each new location, they set up their clinic in the local convent or church, where villagers would come to receive treatment.

As dentists, Vu and Carnice focused solely on tooth extractions, removing the infected and rotten teeth that were prevalent in a large part of the rural population.

Carnice estimated that while the clinic was open she alone saw about 25 patients every day.

“I don’t know where all the energy came from, but somehow I kept going,” she said.

After receiving treatment, patients met with a public health professional who educated them about preventative care and general hygiene. 

But throughout the whole process, the issue of the language barrier was obvious. For Vu and others who speak Vietnamese there was no problem, but the majority of physicians required student translators.

Vu underscored the importance of these translators in properly communicating with the villagers and taking medical histories that are essential for proper treatment.

Despite the difference in language, all the physicians and volunteers were able to recognize the hardship endured by the patients to whom they attended.

Carnice said she was brought to tears by a boy she treated that did not utter a single complaint, only thanks, even with the pain he was suffering from his rotten teeth and the extractions.

Vu emphasized that most rural families cannot afford food, let alone medical care, for their children and that is why the VVH’s missions are so important.

VVH has been in operation for six years, and another trip to Vietnam, this time led by Vu, is scheduled for next summer. 

Vu welcomes any physicians, pharmacists, teachers, or just passionate volunteers who would like to join.

Both he and Carnice acknowledged the commitment required to take off three weeks of time from their practices, but in the end they said it was worth it.

“Taking off three weeks is definitely hard, but there’s a feeling of satisfaction from doing something like this,” said Vu. “I guess you have to set priorities. If you want to make it happen you find a way.”

For more information about Vietname Village Health, including information about joining the 2012 mission, visit www.vvhealth.org.