Regarding free operation for facial deformity and speech therapy treatment in Hanoi

From 19-20/6/2017, at Vietnam – Cuba Friendship Hospital Hanoi, with the support of volunteers from Vietnam International Bank (VIB), Operation Smile Vietnam (OS) screened, operated and trained speech therapy for approximately 120 children with cleft lips, cleft palates from Northern provinces and cities in the country.

In this medical mission to Hanoi, the VIB volunteers assisted doctors and OS team in registering patients, filling in medical records, guiding the patients and their parents, interviewing the parents for possible causes to their children’s facial deformity. The mission is scheduled to check and cure about 120 patients.

According to an uncompleted statistic figure, in Vietnam, each year about 3,000 children were born with facial deformity (1/700 ratio), which is one of the most populous deformities in the country. Children born with the deformity often face difficulties in eating, drinking, and speaking, resulting in malnutrition, poor health. When growing up, they may be teased by other peers and find it hard to integrate in the community.

This is also the first time OS Vietnam has organized a speech therapy training course for medical staff from Nghe An province and parents of the children with the facial deformity. This pilot speech training course is the first step in a long-term speech therapy project for post-operated children in Vietnam.

All costs related to health check, operation, food, accommodation, travelling, and speech therapy training in this medical mission are sponsored by VIB and its employees.

Overview of Operation Smile

Operation Smile (OS) is a non-profit organisation of the US, specialising in the health care sector. It has been present in Vietnam for 28 years. OS has helped to screen and operate approximately 40,000 Vietnamese children born with cleft lips, cleft palates. Annually, more than 30 medical missions are organised by OS Vietnam with nearly 2,000 patients treated. Besides, OS Vietnam regularly organised functional training courses for medical staff in localities in order to help enhance their capabilities and improve the health care system. Simultaneously, the organisation also does research into possible key causes to cleft lips and cleft palates, aiming to wipe out these causes in the future. OS is collaborating with the Ministry of Health of Vietnam to build up a Safe Operation Standard, which plans to be officially applied in local hospitals from 2017.

To register for operation, kindly contact OS Vietnam via relevant telephone numbers: Hanoi Office (04.3936 5426) and HCMC Office (08.2222 1008) during office hours or call the hotline: 090 488 5555.

Overview of VIB

Established in 1996, VIB has now become one of few local banks with the highest credit ranking rated by Moody’s. Currently, VIB owns 160 branches/ transaction offices nationwide and it banks with more than 8,000 correspondent banks in 61 countries. The bank has over 4,000 employees serving 1.6 million personal customers and 34,000 corporate customers.

VIB has recently been rated as one of the banks with a sustainable business strategy, a transparent corporate governance model, and a professional working environment. The bank’s products and services are also highly praised by both local and international institutions through different awards: The Banker, Financial Times, UK; IFC, a member of World Bank Group; Global Banking & Finance Review, UK.