Vietnam best at endoscopic surgery, Asian congress finds

The contest result was announced Monday at the annual congress of Endoscopic and Laparoscopic Surgeons of Asia (ELSA), held in Kuala Lumpur last month. Finalists were Vietnam, Thailand, Philippines and Taiwan.

At the event, the Endoscopy Training Center of HCMC University of Medicine and Pharmacy Hospital was recognized as a "Center for Excellence."

Founded in 1990 by a small group of experts in the field, the ELSA Annual Congress attracts more than 1,200 participants every year.

Dr. Nguyen Hoang Bac, Director of HCMC University of Medicine and Pharmacy Hospital, said that receiving the certification is a powerful motivation for the hospital's teachers and clinicians to offer more high quality human resources training.

Doctors of HCMC University of Medicine and Pharmacy Hospital perform a laparoscopic surgery. Photo courtesy of N.P.

The Training Center of Endoscopic Surgery at the HCMC University of Medicine and Pharmacy Hospital was established in 2003 and is the first laparoscopic surgical center in the country. Over the last 15 years, the center has trained more than 1,600 Vietnamese and 700 foreign surgeons.