HI began working in Vietnam very early (1989) to help the many people with disabilities, the injured, and the victims of bombs, anti-personnel mines and explosive remnants of war. In 1989, the Vietnamese Ministry for Health asked the organisation to set up the first orthopaedic workshop in Hanoi. HI later opened two more orthopaedic fitting workshops in 1993 and 1994, one in Dalat and one in the province of Dong Ha.
Over the following years, at the request of its Vietnamese partners – in particular different government ministries and provincial institutions - HI provided technical advice on disability prevention and physical rehabilitation projects. The organisation was therefore able to ensure the sustainability of the work carried out in the fields of rehabilitation, socio-economic inclusion, and human rights. This meant consolidating methods, strategies and services offered in conjunction with the Vietnamese authorities, to allow them to appropriate and implement them themselves.
The organisation helps improve the living conditions of people with brain damage (brain injury, cerebral palsy, and the like), by ensuring they are able to access quality rehabilitation services. The organisation is also building the technical skills of rehabilitation teams (doctors, physiotherapists and social workers) and members of families, volunteers, village heads, and so on, in hospitals and communities.
