Vietnamese blue berets’ competence acknowledged

The patient has recovered from the surgery.

Earlier, a 31-year-old Pakistani engineering officer was diagnosed with inguinal hernia and asked to have an operation by doctors and nurses of the Vietnamese L2FH Rotation 3. His request was approved by the Head of Force Medical Officer of the UN Peacekeeping Mission in South Sudan who was impressed by the Vietnamese medical staff’s professional competence during a recent assessment of the hospital’s operational capacity.

Asked why he chose the Vietnamese medical staff to conduct the surgery, the Pakistani officer said that he had absolute trust in the Vietnamese doctors’ professional competence.

Lieutenant Colonel Trinh My Hoa, the hospital's director, presenting a souvenir to the patient

The engineering company of Pakistan is stationed near the L2FH Rotation 3 of Vietnam, so the officer and other members of his unit clearly knew the prestige and professional qualifications of the Vietnamese doctors.

The surgical team, including surgeon Nguyen Thanh Nam, performed the surgery using lichtenstein and transverse abdominis plane (TAP) block techniques. Lichtenstein is one of the best surgical techniques in the treatment of inguinal hernias, as it helps shorten the recovery time and reduces the recurrence rate.

Despite inadequate medical supplies, doctors and nurses of the Vietnamese L2FH Rotation 3 successfully performed the surgery, contributing to consolidating patients’ trust in Vietnamese peacekeepers and raising the prestige of the Vietnamese L2FH Rotation 3 though it has just started operation in Bentiu for only more than two months. With Vietnamese medical staff’s good care, the patient recovered quickly and was discharged from the hospital.

Pakistani officer and personnel of the Vietnamese hospital posing for a joint photo before he was discharged from the hospital

In mid-June, the UN Mission in South Sudan sent a mission to assess the Vietnamese hospital’s operational capacity and Vietnamese doctors’ professional competence and response. During the assessment, Yasmin Zulfiqar Bhatti, head of the assessment mission, expressed her satisfaction and confidence in the Vietnamese medical staff’s competence.  

Reported by Mai Lien - Kieu Quang - Tien Phuc (From South Sudan)

Translated by Tran Hoai