Articles

The Future of Social Care in Vietnam: Ageing, Technology, Workforce and the Next Generation of Long-Term Care
Vietnam’s next generation of social care will be shaped by more than population ageing alone. This final Vietnam pillar examines how demographic change, community support, workforce development, financing, technology, prevention and stronger governance could combine into a more mature long-term care system through the 2030s, while preserving family relationships and ensuring that innovation translates into greater independence, inclusion, continuity and quality of life. Read more...
Reforming Social Care in Vietnam: From Family Dependence Towards a More Sustainable Care System
Vietnam’s families remain the foundation of support for many older and disabled people, but demographic ageing, migration, smaller households and changing employment patterns are making exclusive reliance on unpaid care increasingly difficult. This article examines how Vietnam can develop a more sustainable mixed care system through stronger home and community services, formal care work, financing, quality assurance and public responsibility while preserving the relationships and community assets that already support everyday care. Read more...
What Can Vietnam Learn from International Long-Term Care Systems? Adaptation Without Copying
Vietnam can learn from countries that have already developed formal long-term care systems, but importing another nation’s institutions would overlook major differences in financing, workforce, family roles and local capacity. This article examines lessons from international experience in funding, community care, integration, quality, workforce and technology, identifying principles Vietnam can adapt while building a long-term care system around its own demographic, social and institutional realities. Read more...
Building a Long-Term Care Market in Vietnam: Government, Communities, Nonprofits and Private Providers
Vietnam’s emerging long-term care market will be shaped by more than the growth of private nursing homes. This article examines how government, community organizations, nonprofit and charitable provision, private investment and families can form a diverse care economy, and how funding, regulation, workforce development, market stewardship and quality assurance can expand capacity without allowing geography or household purchasing power to determine access. Read more...
Financing Vietnam’s Future Long-Term Care System: Insurance, Public Investment and Sustainable Funding
Vietnam’s ageing population is increasing the need to decide not only what long-term care should provide, but how its costs should be shared. This article examines the roles of families, public budgets, social protection, health insurance, private purchasing and possible future long-term care insurance, and considers how Vietnam could finance wider home, community and residential support without confusing healthcare coverage with a comprehensive long-term care entitlement. Read more...
Data and Evidence in Vietnam’s Social Care System: Building Better Planning, Commissioning and Accountability
Vietnam will need stronger evidence about ageing, disability, functional need, family care and service performance as formal long-term care expands. This article examines how population data, administrative records, provider information and lived experience can support better planning and accountability, while addressing fragmented datasets, geographic variation, privacy and data quality. It argues that the real opportunity is not simply collecting more information, but connecting evidence to decisions about capacity, funding, quality and outcomes. Read more...
Assistive Technology in Vietnam: Supporting Independence, Disability Inclusion and Ageing at Home
Assistive technology can enable older and disabled people in Vietnam to move, communicate, participate and manage daily life with greater independence. This article examines how Vietnam can connect assistive products with rehabilitation, home and community support, assessment, fitting, maintenance and accessible environments, while addressing affordability, rural access and fragmented provision. It argues that successful assistive technology policy depends on services and follow-up as much as on the devices themselves. Read more...
Digital Technology and Social Care in Vietnam: Opportunities for Access, Coordination and Independence
Vietnam’s rapid digital transformation could reshape how older and disabled people access support, manage health needs and remain connected with families and communities. This article examines how telecare, digital coordination, remote support, electronic information, assistive technologies and emerging AI could strengthen social care while addressing digital exclusion, privacy, workforce capability, rural connectivity and the governance needed to ensure technology supports rather than replaces human relationships. Read more...
Integrated Health and Social Care in Vietnam: Connecting Hospitals, Primary Care, Families and Communities
Vietnam’s ageing population and growing burden of chronic illness are increasing the number of people whose needs cross hospital, primary healthcare, rehabilitation, family care and community support. This article examines how Vietnam can strengthen integration across those settings, with particular attention to discharge, grassroots healthcare, care coordination, workforce roles, information sharing, financing, rural access and the governance needed to turn separate services into more continuous pathways. Read more...
Person-Centred Care in Vietnam: Moving from Service Provision to Individual Outcomes
As Vietnam expands support for older and disabled people, the quality of care will depend on more than the number of services available. Person-centred care asks whether support reflects an individual’s goals, abilities, relationships, culture and preferred way of living. This article examines how Vietnam can translate rights and policy into personalised assessment, shared decisions, outcome-focused care, workforce practice, family partnership and accountable service delivery. Read more...
Safeguarding Older and Disabled People in Vietnam: Strengthening Prevention, Recognition and Response
Protecting older and disabled people in Vietnam requires more than responding to obvious violence. As family care, community support and formal services evolve, safeguarding must also identify neglect, exploitation, coercion, unsafe care and risks hidden by dependency or isolation. This article examines Vietnam’s legal and service context and how stronger recognition, reporting, interagency response, workforce practice, governance and learning could build a more coherent approach to preventing harm. Read more...
Quality Assurance in Vietnam’s Long-Term Care Sector: Building Standards, Oversight and Accountability
As Vietnam’s long-term care sector expands, service availability will need to be matched by credible systems for assuring quality, safety and dignity. This article examines how standards, provider governance, workforce competence, safeguarding, inspection, complaints, outcome measurement and public accountability could develop across residential, community and home-based care while recognising the country’s still-emerging long-term care framework and significant variation between services and localities. Read more...