Interprofessional Collaboration to Improve Health through Poverty Reduction and Better Social Services in Vietnam

Abstract

This paper describes an interprofessional effort
to improve community health in the Vietnam context. Since
the late 1980s, Vietnam has experienced rapid economic
development. However, the economic growth has not extended
to all regions of the country or to all population groups. The
gap is widening between the rural and urban areas, among
various groups. At the same time, there is increasing
incidences of social ills such as HIV/AIDS, prostitution, family
violence, child and elder abuse and neglect. These community
issues need intervention so that people's health can be
improved. In response to request for assistance in dealing with
these issues, the school of Nursing and school of Social Work
of a Canadian university collaborated to assist a Vietnamese
counterpart in designing programs to educate qualified social
workers for meeting this great need of the country.