Recorded presentation

Nhu Thao Thuy Nguyen, Department of Biology, Emory University, c/o Aman Solomon, 115 Biscayne Dr., Unit F-12, Atlanta, GA 30309, 404-514-2356, nhuthaothuynguyen@yahoo.com

Vietnam is in a dynamic state at present, predominantly led by the liberalizing economic reforms of the late 1980’s called “Doi Moi”. This major economic renovation shifted a strictly socialist economy into a more free-market system which consequently brought innumerable changes to the health care system. The purpose of this research is to examine the constraints of a woman, in her satisfaction with, her accessibility to and her barriers from healthcare in Hanoi, Vietnam in this new system. This analysis offers greater knowledge on the construct of contemporary healthcare in Vietnam, recently privatized and deregulated, as it pertains to Vietnamese women, and how inequalities of access and satisfaction intersect with gender. The author conducted 31 extensive, semi-structured interviews in two well respected clinics in Hanoi, a private and public clinic, during the summer of 2002. The data presents reasoning for health-seeking behavior of the 31 Vietnamese women interviewed from the first-person perspective of healthcare users in a context which now includes user fees, compulsory and voluntary insurance schemes and unofficial payments. From these interviews, four major themes arose: 1) satisfaction of care between patrons of public and private clinics, 2) inaccessibility to healthcare despite owning health insurance, 3) inaccessibility to care due to out-of-pocket expenses, like traveling fees or unofficial payments incurred by health professionals, and 4) barriers to healthcare exclusive to women. This research was done with the motivation to exact change in policy and regulation in Vietnam’s healthcare system allowing for greater access to quality healthcare.

Learning Objectives:

• Recognize obstacles many Vietnamese women face accessing healthcare in Hanoi.
• Evaluate the efficacy of the current health insurance scheme in Vietnam as it exists for women in Hanoi.
• Discuss the changes necessary to make Vietnam's evolving healthcare more accessible to more people.

Presenting author's disclosure statement:
I have a significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.
Relationship: Funding by the Vernacular Modernities Summer Research Scholarship at Emory.

Recorded presentation