DECIDES:

Article 1.- To issue together with this Decision the "Regulation on the function, tasks and organization of the apparatus of the Preventive Medicine Centers under the Health Services of the provinces and centrally-run cities and the Preventive Medicine Teams under the Health Centers of the districts, towns and cities under the provinces".

Article 2.- This Decision takes effect 15 days after its issue. The other regulations which are contrary to the stipulations in this Decision are now annulled.

Article 3.- The head of Office, the head of the Organization and Personnel Department, the Head of the Preventive Medicine Department of the Ministry of Health, the Directors of the Health Services of the provinces and centrally-run cities and the heads of the concerned units shall have to implement this Decision.

Minister of Health

A. THE PREVENTIVE MEDICINE CENTERS UNDER THE HEALTH SERVICES OF THE PROVINCES
AND CENTRALLY-RUN CITIES

I. POSITION AND FUNCTION

The Preventive Medicine Center under the Health Service of the province or centrally-run city (hereunder commonly called the province) is a non-business unit under the Health Service with the function of acting as consultant and organizer for the performance of preventive medicine work in the province.

The Preventive Medicine Center is a unit having the legal person status, a separate office and seal and is authorized to open its own account at the State Treasury.

II. TASKS

1. Basing itself on the plan for development of health work in the province, the guidance of the Ministry of Health and the realistic situation in the locality, it shall work out the preventive medicine plan to submit to the leadership of the Health Service and carry out the plan after it is approved.

2. To manage and organize the implementation of all aspects of preventive medicine in the locality including: Prevention and fight against epidemics, environmental hygiene, labor hygiene, prevention and fight against malaria, goiter, AIDS, medical epidemics control... Surveys to monitor the situation of epidemics causing infectious diseases in order to work out concrete and timely plans of prevention and combat.

3. To check the quality of food and food hygiene and safety.

4. To direct and organize the carrying out of the programs of preventive medicine, to review and evaluate the effectiveness of each program, to carry out the integration of the programs at the unit with a view to obtaining high results in the process of execution.

5. To coordinate with the Health Mass Communication and Education Center of the province in order to work out the plan and contents, to direct and organize health mass communication and education to prevent and fight against epidemics and diseases among the population.

6. To take part in training and retraining in preventive medicine according to the plans of the locality and Central Government for specialist officials and other cadres.

7. To manage and organize the effective implementation and use of the resources of the State and the programs such as budget, medicines, materials... to settle the accounts in time and according to prescriptions of the State and the Ministry.

8. To research on and take part in scientific research on preventive medicine, to apply scientific advances aimed at meeting the practical needs of the locality.

9. To organize the execution of preventive medicine services. To collect medical charges and fees of preventive medicine as prescribed.

10. To comply with the reporting regimes as prescribed.

11. To perform other tasks and powers as assigned by the Health Service.

III. ORGANIZATION OF THE APPARATUS

1. Organization:

1.1. Leadership of the Center: The Director and two assisting Deputy Directors with educational standard from First Grade specialist doctor or master upward.

1.2. Specialized sections:

- The Planning and Financial Accounts Section

- The Administrative and Organization Section.

1.3. Specialized departments:

- The Epidemiology Department

- The Labor Health Department

- The Environmental Health Department

- The Department for Quality Check of Food Hygiene and Safety

- The Malaria and Goiter Department

- The Prevention and Fight against AIDS Department

- The Border Medical Epidemics Control Department

- The Laboratory Department

2. Labor norms: As prescribed in current State regulations

3. Tasks of each department and section:

3.1. The Planning and Finance Section:

- To work out the integrated plans for the year, quarters and months of the Center; to organize midterm reviews and wide-ranging reviews to evaluate the results and draw experiences from the realization of these plans.

- To monitor all aspects of activities of the Center, to collect information, to inventorize and report data from the district Health Centers to the higher level, to be accountable for the data it has reported and seriously carry out the reporting regimes as prescribed by the Ministry.

- To manage and allocate budget and materials according to approved plans, and take responsibility for the final settlement of accounts as prescribed.

- To work out the plan for the purchase of materials, chemicals, medicines...

- To work out the plan and organize the training and professional fostering of cadres for the Center and the lower level.

3.2. The Administrative and Organization Section:

- To take full responsibility for the administrative work of the Center, to purchase materials and equipment... according to the approved plan in service of the activities of the Center.

- To manage the materials, properties and to mobilize the means as planned by the Director of the Center.

- To act as manager and consultant for the Director of the Center in personnel work, to carry out the regime and policies related to preventive medicine according to the State regime and the regulations of the Ministry of Health.

- To coordinate with other departments in organizing seminars and refresher courses according to the yearly plans.

3.3. The Epidemiology Department:

- To manage the situation of the infectious and epidemic diseases in the locality. To regularly survey, supervise and detect epidemics, to have a firm grasp of infectious diseases in the locality, on which basis to work out plans for preventing, fighting and controlling them positively in full initiative.

- To organize and direct the adoption of urgent measures of prevention against epidemics whenever they break out. To perform and observe dutifully the reporting regime as prescribed. The information and report must be adequate, accurate and timely.

- To determine in time the factors causing infectious and epidemic diseases, especially diarrhoea, bubonic plague, food poisoning... in order to take the initiative in adopting effective plans of prevention and fight. To cooperate with the medical examination and treatment establishments in adopting measures to report on epidemics, quarantine, treatment and first aid, to organize the treatment at the epidemic breeding grounds and handle these grounds in order to seclude and quickly stamp out the epidemics and limit the death rate.

- To organize the management of the epidemics breeding grounds, to monitor the development of the epidemics, collect information, data, to make statistics and reports, draw up maps and charts of the epidemics, keep file on data...

- To work out the plan for training and upgrading cadres for the lower levels in epidemiology, carry out research projects in service of the prevention and fight against epidemics and control epidemics in the locality.

- To work out the plan for materials to prevent and fight against epidemics including medicines, chemicals, specialized means and equipment... to meet the regular need and support for the lower level.

- To organize the adoption of anti-septic and disinfection measures, insecticide and rat killing.. To regularly supervise the epidemic vectors in order to warn against the danger of epidemics related to these vectors and adopt plans for prevention.

- To carry out programs and projects against infectious diseases.

3.4. The Labor Health Department:

- To supervise the labor environment, control noxious factors (dust, gas, noxious gases, noise, vibration, light, microclimate in the labor environment...), the conditions of heavy labor and noxious and hazardous work prone to accident, in order together with the specialized agencies to take measures to overcome them and improve the labor conditions.

- To manage the basic health network at the factories, enterprises, construction sites, farms and forestry farms... under the ministries, branches and various economic sectors located in the locality. To provide guidance for the laborers about labor hygiene and primary health care.

- To organize periodical health check, to examine for occupational diseases and take part in the evaluation of occupational diseases for the laborers. To manage the laborers’ health, to draw up health registers, classification of health, inventorize the situation of occupational diseases, the sickness and labor accident rate of the production units located in the locality.

- To organize an occupational disease consulting room.

- To connect and coordinate with the Labor Health Center of the branches, corporations, and unions of enterprise to control and manage the situation of environmental pollution at the production units located in the territory in order together to take measure to control and solve environmental pollution.

- To inspect and determine the chemicals according to the prescribed list, to popularize the measures to prevent chemical poisoning. To control the use of chemicals which require strict control in labor hygiene and to direct the initial treatment after poisoning.

- To organize and carry out the training of specialists and other persons.

- To take part in research to control the rate of occupational diseases and to determine them in order to supplement the list of occupational diseases.

3.5. The Environmental Health and Educational Health Department:

- To manage the hygiene of drinking water sources, to inspect regularly and monitor the quality of drinking water and living water source of the population, to supervise the implementation of measures of protection and treatment aimed at ensuring the prescribed hygiene criteria. To take part in the examination and approval of the projects of clean water supply in the locality.

- To study and guide the use of measures to treat human waste and garbage to make them conform with hygienic norms and the local conditions. To provide technical guidance in the building of sanitation works such as latrines, water wells, bathrooms... To conduct regular inspection of their use in order to ensure their hygienic norms.-

- To cooperate with the Environmental Service to manage and evaluate the impact of waste water on health.

- To manage the situation of environmental health in public places such as theatres, movie houses, hotels, schools, shops, cemeteries, hospitals, sanatoria, rest and recreation centers...

- To take part in the approval of the hygiene aspect of the projects of urban and rural development of the locality.

- To take part in the management and professional and organizational guidance in the training in educational health in the locality.

- To organize the implementation of the programs and projects related to environmental health and educational health in the locality

3.6. The Department for Quality Control of Food Hygiene and Safety:

- To work out the plan, direct and carry out food sanitation and safety and nutrition. To supervise and inspect the observance of current regulations on food hygiene and safety in the province.

- To conduct inter-ministerial coordination in inspecting and supervising the quality of sanitation and safety of food circulated on the market including food produced in the country and for export.

- To monitor, inspect, examine and supervise the establishments producing, processing, circulating and dealing in food and the catering establishments in the territory under its management.

- To organize refresher courses on food sanitation and safety for the food producing, processing and catering establishments, including joint venture establishments.

- To organize health checks and examinations for infectious diseases among the unaffected who might transmit germs to persons directly producing, processing or servicing at the food establishments, catering establishments including joint venture establishments.

- To guide the lower echelon in carrying out supervision and inspection of the quality of food sanitation and safety at the food producing, processing and catering establishments.

- To cooperate with related units in investigating food poisonings.

- To organize professional training for specialist workers and other subjects in the province.

- To carry out the statistical and reporting regime as prescribed.

3.7. The Malaria-Goiter Department:

- To build and organize the deployment of the plan and preventive measures against malaria and parasitic diseases and to prevent and fight against goiter.

- To materialize the national target of preventing and fighting against malaria and the national target of preventing and fighting against ailments caused by iodine deficiency.

- To organize the supervision of vectors related to malaria and other parasitic diseases.

- To take part in scientific research on the prevention and fight against malaria and parasitic diseases and goiter.

- To carry out education in the prevention and fight against malaria, parasitic diseases and goiter.

- To take part in the training and professional fostering for specialists and other subjects.

- To carry out the statistical and reporting regime as prescribed.

3.8. The Prevention and Fight Against AIDS Department

To carry out the specialization and profession of the Committee for Prevention and Fight against AIDS of the Health Service according to Decision No. 1716/1999/QD-BYT of June 4, 1999 of the Minister of Health.

3.9. The Border Medical Epidemics Control Department:

- To organize, guide and inspect the performance of border medical epidemics control, to regularly supervise the infectious diseases at the border gates as prescribed.

- To inspect and issue medical epidemics control certificates to people, goods, postal mails and parcels and the transport means passing through the borders and conduct medical handling as currently prescribed.

- To inspect and supervise the observance of sanitary measures for the suppliers and caterers of food and drinks, living water and the transport means of these establishments in the areas of the border gates.

- To organize the application of measures to prevent and fight against disease transmitting vectors that must be subjected to quarantine against epidemics and infectious diseases in the areas of the border gates according to the Regulation on Medical Epidemic Control at the Border.

- To organize the collection of charges and fees on epidemic control as prescribed.

- To carry out the statistical and reporting regime as prescribed.

3.10. The Laboratory Department:

- To conduct tests as required by preventive medicine. To set up a separate laboratory for each domain.

- To study the acceptance of new laboratory techniques in service of diagnostics.

- To take part in the training of specialists and other subjects.

- To ensure the production and preparation of medium and laboratory chemicals to supply on request for the district level in service of the prevention and fight against diseases and epidemics.

- To conduct the laboratory service in preventive medicine as currently prescribed.

- To apply uniformly the technical norms of laboratory already issued by the Ministry of Health, to popularize these techniques to the different echelons. To inspect and evaluate the application of the technical norms already agreed upon.

- To be answerable to the higher echelon and law for the results of the tests.

- To carry out the statistical and reporting regime as prescribed.

Basing himself on the staff and the actual situation in each locality, the director of the Center shall propose the staffing of the groups in the Department and Sections in a way conformable with the tasks and function.

IV. OPERATIONAL BUDGET:

1. Expenditures shall be taken from the health service budget.

2. From the budget of the target national health programs.

3. From the collection of charges and fees of preventive medicine.

4. From the aid fund and other sources.

V. WORK RELATIONS

1. The Provincial Preventive Medicine Center is directly managed and guided by the medical service of the province.

2. The Provincial Preventive Medicine Center is managed and directed professionally by the Ministry of Health (Preventive Medicine Department, the Quality Management and Food Hygiene and Safety Department, the Chief Institute and the Regional Institute and Sub-Institutes).

3. The Provincial Preventive Medicine Center holds cooperative relations with the medical units attached to the Medical Service of the province.

4. The Provincial Preventive Medicine Center holds cooperative relations with the specialized agencies in the province and the Medical Services of the Ministries and branches.

5. The Provincial Preventive Medicine Center is responsible for managing and directing professionally the Health Centers of the districts in preventive medicine.

B. PREVENTIVE MEDICINE TEAM UNDER THE HEALTH CENTER OF THE DISTRICT, TOWN OR CITY
UNDER THE PROVINCE

I. POSITION AND FUNCTION

The Preventive Medicine Team of the Health Center of the district, town or city under the province (hereafter commonly called the district) is a specialized technical unit under the district Health Center having the function of organizing the carrying out of preventive medicine in the district.

II. TASKS

1. Epidemiology-Malaria-Goiter- Prevention and Fight against Social Diseases:

- To conduct surveys, to monitor the situation of communicable and epidemic diseases, malaria, goiter and social diseases in the locality through the results of the medical examinations and treatment at the district hospital, the regional policlinical consulting room, the medical stations at the villages, wards or towns and the mobile Medical Teams in order to adopt monthly, quarterly and yearly plans of prevention and fight against diseases and epidemics.

- To supervise the evolution of the situation of infectious and epidemic diseases, to urgently take measures to quarantine and fight against epidemics upon detection of the first cases and prevent epidemics to break out and rapidly stamp them out.

- To closely control the old epidemic grounds, to take specialized technical measures to check the occurrence and spread of epidemics and eventually to control and stamp them out.

- To organize vaccinations in the locality, the distribution and maintenance of vaccines and bio-products aimed at ensuring the requirements of the project and of the Ministry of Health.

- To control the malaria situation in the locality, to work out the plan and organize its execution, to urge the communes, wards and medical establishments, the agencies, construction sites, farms and factories located in the locality to closely monitor malaria, to take blood samples for test of malaria germs…

- To manage and organize the prevention and fight against ailments caused by the deficiency of iodine in the locality, to survey the actual situation of the disease, and work out a plan for activities according to the approved plan.

- To work out yearly plans for the needs in expenditures, medicines, chemicals... for the prevention and fight against diseases and epidemics, the prevention and fight against malaria and goiter and social diseases in the year, quarters and months in the locality and of the team. To organize the distribution and allocation of medicines according to plan and to guide their use and maintenance…

- To make statistics, work out maps and charts of the types of epidemics in the locality and strictly observe the reporting regime as prescribed.

2. Sanitation: environmental hygiene, labor hygiene, food hygiene and safety

- To guide and mobilize the population to build and repair sanitary works like latrines, water wells, bathrooms and livestock sheds... according to the yearly plan and the technical requirements, to regularly monitor the quantity and quality of the different kinds of sanitary works in the locality.

- To supervise and inspect the quality of drinking water and living water.

- To popularize to the communes, agencies, construction sites, farms and forestry farms and factories located in the locality to carry out measures of treatment of human waste, water, garbage… according to the technical guidance of the higher level.

- To inspect and supervise food hygiene and safety, to draw up the sanitation dossier for each establishment that supplies food and catering service in the locality. To organize regular inspection aimed at detecting and handling in time the unhygienic condition of food. To investigate food poisonings and take samples for test.

- To examine or cooperate in examining the establishments producing and dealing in food which have been assigned with definite tasks so that the district medical center cn issue certificates to them.

- To campaign for and inspect and promote the observance of the regulations and requirements on anti-epidemics hygiene in the communes, wards, towns, agencies, factories, construction sites, farms and forestry farms and schools.

- To guide the health service at the schools.

- To draw up labor sanitation dossiers and inspect and urge the factories, construction sites, farms and forestry farms to carry out measures to overcome noxious elements arising during the process of production and ensure labor sanitation requirements, to prevent and fight against occupational diseases for the laborers.

- To organize periodical health check-ups for laborers in the small and medium enterprises in the locality.

- To guide, inspect and urge the implementation of the regulations on hygiene and labor safety in the medical establishments. To guide the population in the maintenance, use and prevention of poisoning in the use of plant protection substances.

- To coordinate with the specialized branches in the locality in organizing the inspection of the observance of the regimes and policies of the State regarding the protection of the health of laborers.

3. Testing work:

- To meet the requirements of testing in the professional work of the team and medical establishments at the grassroots.

- To take step by step the following tests:

+ To take samples for test and send them to the higher echelon the following: pathological samples, samples of water, food, dust and noxious gas…

+ To directly test for eggs of helminths and dysentry germs, amocbac, malaria germs, and tests of iodine deficiency…

+ To cultivate bacteria

III. ORGANIZATION

1. Organization:

- The leadership of the team comprises: the Team Leader and one or two assisting Deputy Team Leaders

- Depending on the size of the staff and the needs of the work, a number of work groups may be set up.

2. Staff: As prescribed by the present regulations of the State.

IV. BUDGET

The budget lies in the budget of the district Medical Center.

V. WORK RELATIONS

1. The Preventive Medicine Team is directly managed and guided by the district Medical Center.

2. The Preventive Medicine Team is managed and directed professionally by the Preventive Medicine Center and the other centers of the preventive medicine system of the Health Service of the province.

3. The Preventive Medicine Team holds coordinative relations with the Clinical Department and Para-Clinical Departments, the other Preventive Medicine Teams, the Regional Policlininal Consulting Rooms, the Regional Maternity Homes and the specialized sections of the district Health Center.

4. The Preventive Medicine Team is responsible for managing, directing and performing preventive medicine work in the whole district.

Minister of Health