From October 31 to November 8, 2025, Vietnam National Children’s Hospital welcomed an international team of experts from the Fondation Vallée (France), for professional exchange, training and capacity-building in the field of mental health for children and adolescents.
On November 7, 2025, the expert delegation from Fondation Vallée held a meeting with the Board of Directors of Vietnam National Children’s Hospital and presented the final report of their programme at the hospital. The delegation was led by Dr. Didier Touzeau – psychiatrist from Paul Guiraud hospital – and was accompanied by other specialists.
From the hospital’s side, the meeting included Dr Cao Viet Tung – Vice Director of the hospital; Dr Thanh Ngoc Minh (Expert Level II) – Head of the Department of Psychiatry; Dr Nguyen Mai Huong – Head of the Department of Adolescent Health; Assoc.Prof. Ngo Anh Vinh – Deputy Head of the Department of Adolescent Health; and Dr. Tran Thi Thanh Hang – Head of the International Cooperation Department.
In his remarks at the closing meeting, Dr. Cao Viet Tung thanked the French delegation for their valuable professional contribution throughout the working week and affirmed the desire of the hospital for a long-term cooperation:
“Vietnam National Children’s Hospital currently has two specialized departments in adolescent health and psychiatry. In the upcoming period, we hope to expand the outpatient model, develop international cooperation programs to strengthen the professional capacity of our physician teams, and aim for comprehensive mental health care for Vietnamese children.”
Representing the French delegation, Dr. Didier Touzeau expressed gratitude for the warm reception by Vietnam National Children’s Hospital and highly evaluated the effectiveness of the week’s work:
“We have had a productive week of work with open and friendly professional exchanges. The cooperation between Fondation Vallée and Vietnam National Children’s Hospital is becoming increasingly strong.”
During their visit, the Fondation Vallée specialists taught and exchanged with the hospital’s child and adolescent psychiatry team, teams from E Hospital, Hanoi Psychiatric Hospital and some provincial hospitals on many advanced topics such as: clinical case consultation for adolescents; internet and social-media addiction; prevention of gaming and digital-technology addiction; identification of biomarkers of autism spectrum disorders via high-resolution EEG; autistic adolescents – clinical symptoms and comorbid disorders; care of children and adolescents with mental disorders; screening and monitoring tools for adolescents at suicide risk; tic and Tourette syndromes; integration of medical and psychological interventions in adolescent care.
The cooperation between Vietnam National Children’s Hospital and Fondation Vallée commenced in 2023 under the health-cooperation programme between Vietnam and France. A memorandum of understanding was signed with the aim of enhancing professional exchange, training and staff development in the field of child and adolescent psychiatry.
Since 2023, the two sides have implemented many practical exchange and training activities such as sending the hospital’s doctors and psychologists to visit and study the adolescent-health service model at Paul Guiraud Hospital and Fondation Vallée. At the same time, the hospital has hosted expert teams from the center to conduct professional exchanges and teach and consult on adolescent clinical cases.
The closing meeting concluded in a warm atmosphere, reflecting the spirit of tight international cooperation and mutual development between the two institutions. In the upcoming period, both sides will continue to implement training programs, scientific research and professional exchanges, contributing to improving the quality of mental-health care for Vietnamese children and adolescents.
