Free health check-ups and consultations and medicine distribution to elderly people in Phieng Khoai commune, Yen Chau district, Son La province. (Photo: Quang Quyet/VNA)

Vietnam currently has 11.4 million elderly people. The Vietnamese government has paid special attention to the senior citizens who are vulnerable during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Chu Van Cong, Director of Khanh Hoa Provincial Social Protection Center, gave some suggestions,“It’s imperative that elderly people with underlying diseases increase nutrition and do exercise, while  a clean and airy living environment must be created for them. Loudspeaker broadcast and having fun the community will give them a boost in spirit and improve their physical well-being.”

Medical facilities have advised elderly people to undergo screening for COVID-19 vaccination. Ho Chi Minh City’s’ Binh Thanh Hospital is in charge of vaccinating older persons with underlying diseases.

Doctor Tran Trung De, Director of Binh Thanh Hospital, said, “Elderly people usually suffer from high blood pressure, sometimes as high as 180-200. Those cases have to sit back until their blood pressure drops. We let them stay at the hospital for post-injection monitoring. If they are safe, we let them go. We have organized various injection sites for the elderly, including the Vo Thi Sau Secondary School.”

Despite their advanced age, Vietnamese senior citizens are enthusiastically engaging in the fight against the pandemic. 61-year-old Pham Ngoc Tuyet is President of the Red Cross Society and Deputy Head of the People's Protection Committee of Muong Thanh Market, Dien Bien Phu City, Dien Bien Province. Every day she carries a portable loudspeaker and a box of masks, disseminating instructions on COVID-19 safety measures in public places.

“As long as I still have a voice in the society and a prestige in the community, I will do whatever I can for the people. I do it completely with my heart. When I participate in this kind of work, I feel at ease even though there are people who call me crazy or advise me to stay home to be healthy rather than working for no money. But I think differently. When I can do something for the people, that's what comforts me the most in my heart,” Tuyet said.