Vietnamese doctors arrive for training

by Robert Flawith

14 June 2007
On 11 June the most recent recipients of the Hoc Mai Foundation’s Vietnamese scholarships, Dr Nguyen Anh Tuan, Dr Cao Viet Tung and Dr Nguyen Duc Chinh arrived in Sydney to start three month training periods in the University’s teaching hospitals.

Dr Tuan, a specialist in emergency health care will undertake his three month training at Royal North Shore Hospital while Dr Tung, a pediatric cardiology specialist, will train at Westmead Hospital and Dr Chinh, a trauma care specialist, will spend his training period at hospitals in Adelaide and Tasmania. A further 13 Vietnamese health professionals will arrive in Australia on 9 July for training at Royal Prince Alfred Hospital and Royal North Shore Hospital.

Hoc Mai secured $360,000 from AusAID under its Australian Leadership Awards scheme, which will be used to assist 24 health professionals from Vietnam to travel to Australia to observe medical practice at various teaching hospitals in Australia.

The Hoc Mai Foundation’s scholarship program is part of a campaign to improve the medical education in Vietnam by "training the trainers". By providing the opportunity for young Vietnamese doctors and allied health professionals to come to Sydney to train, the Hoc Mai Foundation not only provides state of the art medical training for the lucky few, but also hopes to initiate a flow on effect whereby knowledge gained in Australia is passed on to colleagues in Vietnam.

Hoc Mai, the Australia-Vietnam Medical Foundation, is a non-profit organisation, and foundation of the University of Sydney, established in 2001. Hoc Mai is a Vietnamese phrase meaning "forever learning", reflecting the ongoing bilateral exchange of medical students and health professionals between Australia and Vietnam which is the core endeavor of the foundation.