The “Free Emergency Aid” team stands ready 24/7 to help people in their homes, take them to the Phuc Khang Hospital or transfer them somewhere else, depending on patient requirements and status, all at no cost. The Free Emergency Aid program is coordinated by Dr. Pham Thi Anh Hong from DTU and the medical team at Phuc Khang Hospital. Their objective is to provide optimal support to the medical sector during the pandemic and help normal people with social distancing.
Coordinating first aid in the Cam Le and Hai Chau districts
When the virus was spreading out of control, Dr. Anh Hong personally trained her colleagues in out-of-hospital emergency treatment in an examination room, specifically in the emergency treatment of interrupted blood flow or breathing.
Dr. Anh Hong trains her colleagues in first aid
Dr. Anh Hong lecturers on Disaster and Preclinical Medicine in the DTU Faculty of Medicine, is a member of the DTU Polyclinic Project Board and Deputy-Director of the 115 Emergency Center of Danang. She works hard to train medical personnel to confidently deal with many of the situations that may arise while on duty. “Since August, twenty medical staff at the Phuc Khang Hospital and I have been helping Covid-19 patients in the Cam Le and Hai Chau districts”, Dr. Anh Hong explained. “Many of them are quite young, but very determined, with a keen sense of personal responsibility and we all hope that the outbreak will finish soon.”
“People’s lives have been upended by Covid-19. Local wards have been obligated to isolate, set up blockades and establish red, yellow and green zones. Many patients are hesitant to go to hospital for treatment or are unable to call for an ambulance ion time, which is why the Free Emergency Aid program is fills this requirement.
Dr. Anh Hong (left picture: blue shirt, in center; right picture: blue shirt)
“Minor cases are given first aid at home by a team of doctors and more advanced cases are transferred to higher-level hospitals. In effect, patients living in Cam Le or Hai Chau can call the hotline 0931-999-309 to receive free assistance during the enforcement of social distancing. We hope that we can help them and reduce the load on the 115 Emergency Center, who would otherwise be responsible for the transportation and treatment of many more patients.”
Burning with love for the job
Dr. Anh Hong is also well-known from a list recently compiled by the Danang Center for Disease Control, where her name appears at the top. She is in retirement but volunteered in the mass vaccination program and for work at the Dormitory Field Hospital, to the west of Danang. Following her calling and with a doctor’s dedication, she is not afraid of hardship or danger, and ready to help her colleagues rush to the frontlines of the Covid-19 battle when needed.
Dr. Anh Hong (second from right) trains students and lecturers at the DTU Faculty of Medicine
“I’m not worried about going to dangerous places with high risks of infection, the importance of overcoming the disease has driven me on.” Dr. Anh Hong is indomitable in face of the Grim Reaper’s scythe. “I always strive to use my medical experience to saving lives. The staff in the emergency room of the Danang 115 Emergency Center also have a passion and a boundless enthusiasm for what they do, because they are work at the center of highest infection in Danang. When the city became an epidemic hotspot, I personally coordinated the ambulance team and transferred hundreds of patients to other hospitals. I took part in emergency treatment and the transportation of dangerous cases to the Hoa Vang Field Hospital, the Danang Lung Hospital and the Hue Central Hospital. The line between life and death is narrow, so I would stay awake all night without giving up.”
In the frontline fighting the disease, Dr. Anh Hong is a battle-hardened “white-coat warrior”, in the classroom, she is a dedicated lecturer, who currently teaches Disaster & Preclinical Medicine. She is passionate, has a bold spirit, great confidence, and the desire to emphasize to her students that the entire Danang medical sector is still under enormous stress from the pressure of the pandemic.
“Right now, the mission of medical students must be put into practice more than ever,” said Dr. Anh Hong. “I’m very proud when I recognize DTU shirts at checkpoints around Danang. Our students have learned a lot in the training program, supported by access to a state-of-the-art infrastructure and the latest medical equipment. Wherever they work, they are now able to protect themselves while assisting the local medics and police.”
(Media Center)