Opella and Long Châu partner to enhance digestive and bone health for the community

 

HCM CITY — Opella Vietnam has launched the “Community Digestive and Bone Healthcare” project in partnership with the Long Châu pharmacy and vaccination centre system, aiming to enhance awareness and proactive health management practices among Vietnamese people while accelerating community-focused projects for digestive and bone health in 2026. 

Under a memorandum of understanding that they signed in HCM City on February 4, Opella will support Long Châu in developing a structured roadmap to strengthen pharmacists’ capabilities, focusing on key areas such as disease knowledge, pharmacological risk management and patient counselling skills.

Digestive health problems, including diarrhoea and dysbiosis, remain common in Việt Nam and significantly affect quality of life across many population groups, particularly children. At the same time, bone health has become a growing concern, especially among women and the elderly, amid increasingly sedentary lifestyles, prolonged working postures, limited sun exposure in urban areas and unbalanced nutrition.

According to the partners, these health issues can be effectively prevented and managed early through proper self-care practices and appropriate guidance from pharmacists.

As part of the partnership, Opella will also support lecturer engagement, provide medical knowledge, and co-organise training programmes enabling pharmacists to continuously update their knowledge and strengthen science-based counselling excellence. The two sides will also jointly implement community awareness campaigns. 

Valentina Belcheva, general manager of Opella Vietnam and Cambodia, said proactive healthcare must be simple, accessible and easy to understand, with highly qualified pharmacists and effective patient counselling forming its foundation.

“Through this partnership, we are focusing on pharmacist capability development, supporting community healthcare projects while deepening our understanding of community needs. We expect that this collective effort will set new benchmarks for excellence in pharmacy practice and contribute to a healthier Việt Nam,” she added.

Nguyễn Đỗ Quyên, deputy CEO of FPT Retail and COO of FPT Long Châu, said pharmacy systems play an increasingly vital role as Việt Nam shifts towards a community-centric healthcare model. With more than 2,400 pharmacies nationwide and over 20,000 pharmacists, Long Châu recognises its responsibility as the first healthcare touchpoint for the community, supporting prevention, early detection and daily health management. — VNS