Living Together with Chronic Disease: Informal Support for Diabetes Management in Vietnam (VALID)

The project is conducted in Vietnam’s Thai Binh province as an academic partnership between Thai Binh University of Medicine and Pharmacy (TBUMP) and the Universities of Copenhagen, UCPH, and Southern Denmark, SDU. (See news article)

The project is carried out in close collaboration with the Danish-Vietnamese Strategic Sector Cooperation (SSC) project: Strengthening the Frontline Grassroots Health Worker: Prevention and Management of NCDs at the Primary Health Care Level, with Novo Nordisk as private sector partner. The project places emphasis on research capacity building and includes a pilot intervention programme that introduces diabetes clubs and -classes as elements of diabetes care in Vietnam.

Foto: Signing ceremony in Thai Binh.

WRITING RETREAT

In July 2019, an ethnographic writing workshop was held in Thai Binh, and in November 2019, a joint scientific writing workshop (focusing on the cross-sectional surveys results) was held in Ninh Binh, Vietnam with the participation of four Danish researchers and 12 researchers from Thai Binh University of Medicine and Pharmacy.

Presentation at the Department of Public Health's Global Health Section, November 4, 2021 by Tine Gammeltoft, Dan Meyrowitsch and Ib Bygbjerg. "Writing Retreats for Research: Roles, Results and Reflections from the VALID Project in Vienam". Download in pdf.

WP1 AND WP2 - DATA COLLECTION

Combining epidemiological and ethnographic research methods, data collection for the project has been in process since 2018. 27 ethnographic case studies have been conducted: we are visiting patients and their families on a regular basis and have continued to do so during the Covid-19 epidemic. Both of our planned cross-sectional surveys for WP2 have been conducted.

5 Vietnamese language articles have been published, and two international articles are under peer review/in preparation. Additional Vietnamese articles are in preparation, including one on the impact of C19 on the lives of people with chronic disease. Six international articles based on the cross-sectional surveys are currently in preparation.

The articles are based on interdisciplinary research conducted in cooperation with the Ministries of Health of Denmark and Vietnam’s strategic sector cooperation (SSC) project titled “Strengthening the Frontline Grassroots Health Worker: Prevention and Management of NCDs at the Primary Health Care Level” (see “Collaboration”).

WP3 - PILOT INTERVENTION

The pilot intervention was planned during a participatory design workshop held in Thai Binh on October 7-10, 2019, with the participation of researchers, health providers, community health workers, and patient/informal caregiver representatives. Because of needs expressed during this participatory workshop, patient clubs and -classes served as our main technologies for the intervention. Implementation of the pilot intervention was originally scheduled to start in spring 2020 but were postponed to the fall due to Covid-19.

Patient education materials which were used during the intervention was developed, drawing on needs identified through WP1+WP2 research. The clubs and classes were held successfully.