Hanoi (VNA) – A workshop was held in Hanoi on May 22 to gather ideas for thebuilding of a national action plan to eliminate the transmission of HIV, hepatitis B and syphilis frommothers to children.

Addressing the event, Deputy Minister of Health Nguyen VietTien noted that the transmission of these diseases from mother to child causesmany consequences, greatly affecting the health of mothers and children, stressingthe ministry’s determination to complete the goals of erasing mother-to-childtransmission of these diseases.

He said that pregnant women lack access to health services inremote, border and island areas, creating a major challenge for the nationalprogramme to eliminate the diseases.

The Ministry of Health’s Maternal and ChildHealth Department reported that the rate of HIV infection among the country’stwo million pregnant women every year is 0.25 percent.

At the same time, Vietnam is one of thecountries with the highest prevalence of hepatitis B virus in the world, at10-20 percent. Therefore, the prevalence of hepatitis B virus amongpregnant women is also high.

According tothe Central Dermatology Hospital’s latest report, the incidenceof congenital syphilis in newborns is on the rise.

A draft on the National Action Plan to eliminatethe transmission of HIV, hepatitis B and syphilis from mothers to children inthe 2018-2030 period has been completed by the Ministry of Health.

The plan will focus on key solutions:strengthening communication and finance, innovating new methods of treatmentand enhancing the quality of health services such as screening, diagnosis, careand treatment for mothers and children.

At the workshop, participants discussed issuessuch as antenatal care and pre-testing for disease discovery, interventions forpregnant women, mother-to-child transmission, funding for the implementation ofthe plan, inter-sector coordination and monitoring.

According to the World Health Organisation (WHO),in the western Pacific Region, every year, about 180,000 people are infectedwith hepatitis B, 13,000 children are infected with syphilis and 1,400 childrenare infected with HIV.

These diseases can be prevented through simpleand accessible interventions, including pre-testing for pregnant women andvaccination of infants after birth.

Participants at the workshop agreed that in Vietnam,there is a lack of coordination among medical service providers such asclinics, hospitals and grass-roots health centres. This restricts mothers andinfants from accessing advanced medical services and limits the effectivenessof medical intervention.

WHO has developed a framework for theelimination of HIV, hepatitis B and syphilis from mothers to children in theAsia-Pacific region for the 2018-2030 period and recommended member statesdevelop national action plans to eliminate mother-to-child transmission of thethree diseases by 2030.-VNA