Guiding local residents to address administrative formalities (Illustrative image. Source: VNA)
Most people interviewed in a recent survey said that only 50 percent of rest rooms at hospitals in Vinh Phuc, Phu Tho, Thanh Hoa and Binh Dinh provinces were satisfactory.
The survey was interviewed over 5,400 individuals, businesses and organisations in the four provinces between 2014-15.
And less than half the patients in those hospitals said drinking water was available, but 70 percent were satisfied with the situation.
In Vinh Phuc and Binh Dinh, 30 percent of patients had to share beds, but most were content with their treatment and hospital facilities.
The comments were contained in a survery backed by the World Bank and presented at a national conference in Da Nang on August 27 on using feedback to provide better services. Representatives from 30 provinces and cites in Vietnam attended.
The survey assessed four aspects of service delivery - accessibility, responsiveness, cost of services and feedback mechanisms. It also aimed to provide information for improved service supply and laying the groundwork for further research in Vietnam.
Chairman of Phu Tho People's Committee said it was the first time feedback had been used to help service delivery. "We found the findings to be very helpful," he said.
"Based on those findings, we can take specific actions to improve our public services."
A survey in Phu Tho province showed that 50 percent public servants still harassed residents seeking information about public procedures and provided explanations that were not clear.
Fifty percent of respondents said that public procedures were too long.
The four provinces were actively involved in the decision-making and administration of the surveys. Provincial and agency staff were trained in undertaking user surveys so that they can conduct similar research in the future.
World Bank's senior governance specialist Soren Davidsen said all four provinces had incorporated funding for future surveys into their annual budget to ensure the process would continue.
Da Nang has seen the most rapid local development in Vietnam. This has been accompanied by comprehensive reform of public administration.
The province has greatly improved its ranking under the Provincial Governance and Public Administration Performance Index. Ranked eleventh out of the 63 provinces in 2011, it is now in second place.
The city launched online public evaluations on administrative procedures at 56 communes, precincts and departments throughout the city.-VNA
