Located on the 1A road in Thu Duc’s Gian Dan neighborhood, one kilometer from the Ho Chi Minh City Oncology Hospital, the house became an official charity organization over a month ago.
The home’s manager, Nguyen Minh Tuan, says the house was built two years ago by a relative of his. They saw people in need, so they opened up the house to poor out-of-town patients visiting Ho Chi Minh City for treatment.
“We have a family member who died of cancer, so we totally understand the hardships that poor patients may encounter,” Tuan says.
“So, we decided to host them for free.”
Beside a small room on the first floor which serves as a reception area, all of the other rooms are filled with bunk beds for patients and their relatives. Nearly 300 people could stay in the house at one time, however, current occupancy has been hovering in the twenties.
People can not only stay for free, they are also given blankets, bed sheets, and pillows.
Every floor is equipped with a small kitchen and four toilets. The house’s owners have also provided bowls, cookers, and water purifiers.
Tuan says the home also employs a housekeeper and a security guard.
“We currently spend around VND10 million ($425) a month operating the house,” Tuan shares.
“If the home is fully occupied, the monthly cost can be up to around VND50 million.”
Tuan visits a patient from the central highland province of Lam Dong who has been staying at the house for a week. Most patients in the house are undergoing cancer treatment, and most of them has relatives accompanying and taking care of them.
According to Tuan, the enrollment procedure is simple: patients are only required to submit their official ID card and hospital documents.
“Our only purpose is to share the financial pressure with the patients,” he says.
Le Thi Kim Linh, 57, from the southern province of Binh Dinh, helps her husband eat with a feeding tube. The husband-and-wife were among the first people to officially enroll at the home. Linh’s husband is being treated for throat cancer.
Linh says when they first came to HCMC for treatment, they rented a 5-meter-square room, which was just enough for two people, for a daily rate of VND100,000.
“It’s spacey and comfortable here,” she says. “Everything we need is here already, so we can save millions of dong a month.”
Staying in the next bunk beds are Le Thi Hoang Linh, 40, of Khanh Hoa Province, and her husband. They stay at Tuan’s house for 1-2 weeks every time they visit HCMC for his tongue cancer treatment.
Linh is a factory worker and her husband is a farmer. They have three children and have to take care of Linh’s elderly mother-in-law. Since Linh’s husband was diagnosed with tongue cancer, they’ve had to travel to HCMC on a monthly basis. So their two older children have to take care of each other and their grandmother while their parents are away. Meanwhile, the youngest child is living with Linh’s parents.
The family has borrowed a total of VND200 million to treat Linh’s husband.
“Treatment costs around VND300,000 a day, so being able to stay here for free helps us a lot financially,” she says.
“We are really grateful.”
Phan Van Hai, 53, and his wife, both from the Mekong Delta province of An Giang, have lunch in the hallway. Hai prepares their meals with rice donated by charity organizations.
Hai says his wife was diagnosed with breast cancer two years ago and has been undergoing treatment ever since. They spend all their money on her medical bills.
Le Thi Sang, 41, from the southern province of Tay Ninh, has lunch on her own as no relatives are accompanying her. She was diagnosed with stage 2 cervical cancer, and her husband is also in the hospital after getting into an accident.
“Other people here help me buy and prepare meals,” she says.
“We often talk with one another as well, so I feel less lonely.”
The house owners keep a store of free food for people living in the home, including instant noodles, rice, milk, and fruit. The food is donated by the house owners’ friends.
“If more people come here, I will collaborate with charity organizations to prepare meals and celebrate patients’ birthdays here,” Tuan says.
Nguyen Van Tuan, 35, lives near the charity house. He often offers to drive people to the hospital, because he’s seen motorbike taxi drivers scamming patients.
“I charge VND10,000 per ride for gasoline,” he says.
“If someone asks me to go out to buy medicines or other products for daily needs, I help them for free.”
Sang offers incense to a statue of a Bodhisattva at the front door of the home.
A representative from the local people’s committee has said the local government will help patients staying in the house register for temporary residence status and also guide them on how to get the best treatment from hospitals.
