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Purpose This study investigated the availability of relevant structural and human resources needed for the clinical management of patients with severe acute respiratory infections and sepsis in critical care units in Vietnam. Material and methods A questionnaire survey was conducted by purposive sampling of 128 hospitals (36% of total hospitals in surveyed provinces), including 25 provincial and 103 district level hospitals, from 20 provinces in Vietnam. Data on availability of hospital characteristics, structural resources and health care workers was then analyzed. Results Most hospitals (> 80%) reported having 60% of the relevant structural resources. Significant differences were observed between provincial hospitals when compared to district hospitals in regards to availability of central oxygen piping system (78.3% vs 38.7%, p = 0.001) mechanical ventilation (100.0% vs 73.6%, p = 0.003), mobile x-rays (80.0% vs 29.8%, p, Highlights • The international standards for critical care services cannot be met consistently due to lack of some key resources. • A major limitation in critical care units was the lack of particulate respirators (N95) for airborne precautions. • There is a need to establish an essential list of equipment and supplies to better prepare ICUs for future threats.

Objectives: Lactate is a major parameter in medical decision making. During labor, it is an indicator for fetal acidosis and immediate intervention. In the Emergency Department (ED), rapid analysis of lactate/blood gas is crucial for optimal patient care. Our objectives were to cross-compare-for the first time-two point-of-care testing (POCT) lactate devices with routine laboratory results using novel tight precision targets and evaluate different lactate cut-off concentrations to predict metabolic acidosis. Design and methods: Blood samples from the delivery room (n=66) and from the ED (n=85) were analyzed on two POCT devices, the StatStrip-Lactate (Nova Biomedical) and the iSTAT-1 (CG4+ cassettes, Abbott), and compared to the routine laboratory analyzer (ABL-735, Radiometer). Lactate concentrations were cross-compared between these analyzers. Results: The StatStrip correlated well with the ABL-735 (R=0.9737) and with the iSTAT-1 (R=0.9774) for lactate in umbilical cord blood. Lactate concentrations in ED samples measured on the iSTAT-1 and ABL-735 showed a correlation coefficient of R=0.9953. Analytical imprecision was excellent for lactate and pH, while for pO2 and pCO2 the coefficient of variation was relatively high using the iSTAT-1. Conclusion: Both POCT devices showed adequate analytical performance to measure lactate. The StatStrip can indicate metabolic acidosis in 1 μl blood and will be implemented at the delivery room. Keywords: Lactate, Point-of-care testing, Blood gas, Fetal acidosis