Support for the Vietnam Administration for Medical Services (VAMS) is a critical component of PEPFARs ongoing commitment to health system strengthening since the majority of clinical laboratory testing is conducted at provincial level hospitals. This Ministry of Health (MOH) department, formerly known as the Division of Therapy, is a management department responsible for authorizations, supervision, monitoring, and management of all technical aspects related to the health care and treatment systems in Vietnam (including public/private hospitals and all medical care units with consultation and treatment activities). VAMSs main objectives in medical services include the development of quality management systems for laboratories (building networks and creating policies), establishing national guidelines for testing, the development of laws/regulations, and the development of national technical standards. For HIV-related activities, a memorandum of understanding has been signed with the Vietnam Administration for HIV/AIDS Control (VAAC), which tasks VAMS with developing the National Laboratory Strategic Plan (NLSP) and strengthening laboratory quality management systems.

Since 2009, CDC has supported VAMS for the following activities: 1) Creation of the National Laboratory Strategic Plan for Vietnam (completed/approved in 2010); 2) Creation of the Bureau of Quality Management (BQM), and it is currently working on a national laboratory quality standards circular; 3) Appointment and support of 3 Quality Control Centers (QCC) for implementing laboratory standards and EQA programs with responsibility for laboratory QA programs and will provide support for laboratory accreditation, both nationally and internationally.

In Vietnam, strengthening capacity of laboratory management and quality control is urgently needed. According to statistics from MOH, Vietnam has 1063 public and 94 private hospitals, each with its own medical laboratory department/office. In addition, there are thousands more clinics and other treatment and laboratory facilities around the country that fall generally under the treatment system. Many of them are substandard in managing quality control and most lack resources to meet even minimal requirements related to quality control. In particular, quality monitoring procedures are seldom implemented in a productive way, often due to a lack of consistent direction from the central level, as well as the lack of an effective overall management network that includes policies, guidelines and standards for quality control in laboratories.

COP 12 funds will allow VAMS to implement the following activities:1) Continued development of rules, regulations, legal policies, and national guidelines for laboratories and laboratory testing to make fundamental, comprehensive and coordinated changes in all aspects of medical laboratory quality management and control to ultimately improve and assure the accuracy and safety, along with optimal efficiency in the provision of national health services, treatment and patient care.2) Implementation of a newly developed laboratory certificate and training program, Strengthening Laboratory Management Towards Accreditation, to facilitate better structure and quality of services provided by labs at all levels across the country.3) Development of laboratory standards for different levels of health facilities that will be followed by all medical laboratories to ensure the quality of laboratory tests.4) Implementation of activities described at the NLSP to help enforce national efforts towards developing sustainable laboratory health systems.