Quality remains priority for Hanoi French Hospital

Prof. Philippe Hovette (left), director general, and Lucien Blanchard (right), general manager, both from Hanoi French Hospital

Driven by operation success, Hanoi French Hospital (HFH) is going to open a new building next month. How will patients benefit from new and advanced services? What is the key to its success?

Throughout 2018, we continued to maintain a consistent quality of products and a stable flow of customers, therefore we have a strong customer base with people coming back regularly. We also had the construction of a new building running during the year which saw all teams involved in communication to make all patients feel comfortable if they were disturbed by construction.

Now we are preparing to open the new building which has been equipped with fantastic facilities and new state-of-the-art equipment imported from Europe. Within it is a comfortable space with more facilities to come over time.

In addition to the advanced equipment, we are also focusing on human resources training. Last year, we sent many doctors to Switzerland, Monaco, and France for training. This helps bring Vietnamese doctors to the same level as their foreign counterparts and instills within them the same vision and values that satisfy our customers. Moreover, it is extremely important for us to have good middle management.

Currently we have 50 Vietnamese doctors, 15 French doctors, and an additional 120 consultant doctors. More French and Vietnamese doctors are also set to work in the new building.

Above all, we have a philosophy which is important to us and is at the root of our organisation. It is easy to copy a concept, but harder to implement the philosophy. That is why we have the Tree of Life, or Cay Doi, it is to put our mind, heart, and soul into everything we do. And the slogan ‘So Close to You’ reflects that.

Vietnam is forecast to see a rise in investment from other member ­nations of the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP), thus possibly increasing the demands for high-quality healthcare services. How are you preparing to cash in on this trend?

Every year, a lot of money leaves the country to places like Bangkok or Singapore. Increasing levels of comfort is an important factor in keeping that money here. Our new building will offer high levels of facilities and comfort.

Looking forward, with more companies expanding into Vietnam as a result of the CPTPP, what they are looking for are three important things: good schools, good healthcare, and safety. One of the factors involved in good healthcare is confidentiality, however Vietnamese hospitals have a poor reputation on this. At HFH, we do this aspect very well.

At present, we are co-operating with many hospitals throughout the country, including Viet Duc, Bach Mai, Cardiology Hospital, Saint Paul, and others to share our expertise and experience. We also have partners in the region, thus we can guide and help patients who are seeking further treatment abroad.

We are at full capacity at the moment, and we are expecting an increase in the number of patients once the new building opens. We will renovate our existing premises after our new one opens to continue serving the growing demand.

We are able to think flexibly. We have not been designed to do public healthcare, indeed, we can ­compliment public healthcare hospitals.

What are you focusing on for the future? In an increasingly ­competitive sector, is taking steps ­towards more sustainability needed to retain your position as a leading integrated healthcare provider in the north of the country?

We are already equipped in the new building with energy-saving ­facilities and a fantastic water treatment system.

We also have an air conditioning system to cool the water. Moreover, we are looking at how to dispose of garbage in a more environmentally-friendly manner. There will be further steps towards a path of green development after the opening of the new building.

Evidently, it is challenging to go green in the healthcare sector here because there is a lack of support. In fact, it is difficult to find a company that provides green products as one would expect. At present, there are very few green products available on the market. In spite of that, we are taking steps to find solutions on how we will go greener in the future.