2007 Agent Orange Public Health Tour
Nguyễn Thị Ngọc Phượng, M.D.
D.O.B: March 10, 1944, Dong Nai Province, Vietnam.
Professional and Social positions
2006 – present Vice President, Union of Solidarity Societies of Ho Chi Minh City.
2004 – present Vice President, Vietnam Association for Victims of Agent Orange/Dioxin (VAVA).
2000 – present Member of the Presidium, Vietnam Fatherland Front.
1999 – present Vice President, Vietnam Fatherland Front of Ho Chi Minh City.
1999 – present President, Vietnam American Friendship Association of Ho Chi Minh City.
1992 – 1997 Deputy Chair, Commission of the International Relations of the Vietnam National Assembly.
1987 – 1992 Vice Speaker of the Vietnam National Assembly.
Professional Associations
— Vice President, Vietnam Obstetricians and Gynecologists Association.
— Chair, the Ho Chi Minh City Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility Department.
— Member of Advisory Board, Asia Pacific Menopause Society & Assisted Reproductive Technology.
— Member of International Menopause Societies.
— Vice President, Sponsor Association for Poor Patients of Ho Chi Minh City.
— Chair, Ngoc Tam Charity, an organization for poor women living in remote areas.
— Chair, the HCMC Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility.
Education
1970 – 1974 Post-graduate training in Saigon Medical University Obstetrics & Gynecology, in collaboration with the American Medical Association.
1972 Certificate of ECFMG (Educational Council for Foreign Medical Graduates).
1970 Graduated, Doctor of Medicine from Saigon Medical University.
Teaching activities
2000 – present Chair, Obstetrics & Gynecology Department, Ho Chi Minh City University of Medicine and Pharmacology.
1997 – present Lecturer, Department of Obstetrics & Gynecology, Ho Chi Minh City University of Medicine and Pharmacology.
1993 – present Chair, Women Health Department, HCMC University Center for Training of Health Professionals.
1982 – 2000 Deputy Chair, Obstetrics & Gynecology Department, Ho Chi Minh City University of Medicine and Pharmacology.
1972 – 1975 Teaching Staff, Saigon Medical University.
Clinical appointments
1994 Associate Professor, University of Medicine in Nice Sophia Antipolis, France.
1990 – 2005 Director, Từ Dũ Obstetrics & Gynecology Hospital, HCMC.
1982 – 1989 Vice Director, Từ Dũ Obstetrics & Gynecology Hospital, HCMC.
Published scientific research
1997 First implementation and first success of in-vitro fertilization in Vietnam.
1997 Study of the Health status of post-menopausal women and measures for enhancement of their quality of life.
1993 – present Approach to the training model of traditional birth attendants of minority ethnics for remote areas in Vietnam. Today, there are nearly 700 ethnic minorities midwives trained and still working well in mountainous areas in Vietnam.
1990 Prevention of mother to baby transmission of viral hepatitis B.
1983 Impact of toxic chemical warfare on reproductive health.
Key achievements
1982 – 2005 As a member of the Board of Directors of the Từ Dũ Obstetrics & Gynecology Hospital:
— After the war, the Hospital had to incur various difficulties. Dr. Phuong preserved and maintained the Hospital.
— She sent many teams of physicians to remote areas in the southern provinces to provide gynecologic check-ups for the populations. In turn, the provinces sent construction materials so that the hospital could be kept running.
— Dr. Phuong undertook and led research on the harmful effects of chemical herbicides on the reproductive health of people living in the sprayed rural areas, and conducted programs for ultra-sonographic screening for prenatal birth defects at the district level of the provinces in the southern part of Vietnam.
— Dr. Phuong conducted studies on the Mother to Child transmission of viral Hepatitis B and launching a campaign for an immunization program against viral hepatitis B for new-born babies and non-gravid ?? women to reduce mother to child transmission. The vaccination against HBV is now integrated in the expanded national immunization program.
— Dr. Phuong established a pregnant women’s care network and promoted a strategy for clean and safe birth attendance in remote areas of the jungle. To date, nearly 700 rural midwives from various ethnic minority groups living in the Central Highlands have been trained. These midwives are highlanders who may use their own community language to educate their community on reproductive health issues such as prenatal care and gynecologic visits, family planning, cleaner and safer delivery.
— In Bu Dang District (Binh Phuoc Province), Dr. Phuong set up a pilot district model of Mother and Child Healthcare in the mountainous region. A system of medical facilities and professional training was set up as an Emergency Obstetric Care Unit (EmOC). Up to the present, this pilot project has yielded positive outcomes in Maternal and Child Health.
— Since 1997, Dr. Phuong has been engaged in research on assisted reproductive technology (ART) such as in vitro fertilization (IVF) with sterile couples. In Vietnam, like other Asian countries, giving birth for the continuity of a family line is of critical importance for a family. After the success of the first IVF in Vietnam at Tu Du Hospital, annual training courses have been organized for medical specialists coming from other provinces in the country. These courses also enroll trainees from such ASEAN countries as Malaysia, Philippines and Myanmar. The ART program is now well-developed, with more than 4,000 babies born using ART-IVF in Vietnam.
— Translating and editing: Dr. Phuong has translated/co-translated and edited more than 10 books of popular education about prenatal care, newborn baby care, women’s health as well as the book IMPAC from the World Health Organization.
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