Published February 16, 2022

Nhi Dong 1 has taken a huge step forward expanding its cardiac program! We are excited to share that the hospital in Vietnam (Ho Chi Minh City) is going to move to a new heart center facility this spring.

With the new space, the cardiac program has the potential to double its capacity which results in more children with heart disease receiving the care they need. The cardiac ICU will expand from six beds to twenty beds and cardiac surgery will double their step-down beds to twenty.

“We’ve developed a 5-year plan for the cardiac program. We’ve decided to recruit more staff. So, we are sure that more pediatric cardiac patients will be treated in our new heart center,” says hospital director Dr. Nguyen Thanh Hung.

The cardiac care program will occupy five floors in the new building which means they’ll also be able to accommodate two catheterization labs and have their own simulation unit for cardiac training.

“Being able to build a new hospital during the pandemic is a huge feat that holds such a wonderful promise for the children in the region,” says Children’s HeartLink country director Adriana Dobrzycka. “A new building and the expansion of their pediatric cardiac program to include simulation will enhance their ability to treat children and train other clinicians in the region.”

Currently, like many of our partners, the Nhi Dong 1 team is working on solving staff shortages. “One of the solutions is optimizing the assignment of the cardiac team. Moreover, we will do training and self-training for young doctors. We highly appreciate Children’s HeartLink’s efforts to provide online training and send experts (if possible),” says head of international cooperation Dr. Le Nguyen Thanh Nhan.

Nhi Dong 1, a Children’s HeartLink partner since 2008, is a dedicated children’s hospital providing services to children of Ho Chi Minh City and southern Vietnam, where two-thirds of the country’s population lives. With their current training partner Boston Children’s Hospital, Nhi Dong 1 has been focusing on enhancing ICU care, nursing education, advanced surgical techniques and diagnostics. The hospital is on track to become a Children’s HeartLink Center of Excellence.

Children’s HeartLink saves children’s lives by transforming pediatric heart care in underserved parts of the world. Founded in 1969, we currently support 18 partner hospitals in Brazil, China, India, Malaysia and Vietnam. In 2021, our medical volunteers trained over 5,400 professionals and helped more than 122,000 children worldwide. In the last 53 years, we have helped over one million children with heart disease.  Read more about our work