Locals are being tested for thalassemia.
To screen for and manage the disease, the province has taken several measures, including communications work to raise people’s awareness on pre-marriage health checkup and consultation, and antenatal health screening. Hoa Binh has teamed up with Medlatec hospital to run a programme on thalassemia screening and management. In 2017, the hospital collaborated with the provincial Health Department to offer free screening tests for mutated thalassemia gene to 543 residents in Cao Phong district’s Yen Lap and Yen Thuong communes, with 35.1 percent of whom or 191 people found to be likely to have such gene.
In August 2019, Medlatec continued working with the department and the Hoa Binh General Hospital in launching a large-scale screening programme. Accordingly, the hospital spent 3 billion VND on free screening tests for 2,000 locals. Besides blood tests, residents were also equipped with knowledge on the disease and given consultation after receiving test results.
In the coming time, to step up its efforts, Hoa Binh needs to continue replicating thalassemia-related preventative models across districts and cities. Awareness-raising campaigns are also necessary to help the public understand the disease and benefits of early screening. The health department is recommended to run professional training courses on thalassemia detection, treatment and patient management for medical workers in district- and provincial-level health facilities./.
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