A Legacy of Partnership

Newborns Vietnam’s journey with Da Nang Hospital for Women & Children began long before the first IRONMAN 70.3 race in Vietnam. It was inspired by a visionary Vietnamese doctor whose dream was to give every newborn the best chance of survival through international partnerships, specialist training, and essential equipment.

In 2012, at the hospital’s opening event, Newborns, in partnership with the Dräger family, donated four Babylog 8000 ventilators. This marked the beginning of a deep and transformative collaboration. Over the next four years, UK neonatal consultants delivered Level 1 and Level 2 postgraduate training and two years of UK neonatal nurse training through Canterbury Christ Church University. Four Da Nang doctors were hosted for clinical placements in UK hospital, thanks to flight sponsorship from Vietnam Airlines. Our support extended beyond training. From donations of life-saving equipment to physical upgrades like installing handwashing sinks, we worked together to strengthen care for the most vulnerable babies. We responded swiftly during COVID-19 with supplies for infection control and additional warmers for the delivery room.

With Alive & Thrive, we supported Da Nang teams to train Hanoi hospitals in Early Essential Newborn Care (EENC) and Kangaroo Mother Care—introducing these approaches to a Hanoi private hospital that became a Ministry of Health Centre of Excellence for Breastfeeding. From this humble start in Da Nang, our UK-led neonatal training programme has expanded to Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City and will return to central Vietnam in July at Hue Central Hospital. Each year, over 4,500 hours of UK consultant time is volunteered to support Vietnamese doctors and nurses.

The IRONMAN event remains a symbol of the power of partnership—from the UK consultants who give their time, to the sponsors and the local community. We’ll never forget that our first training programs in Da Nang were made possible by the incredible efforts of early supporters, including the co-founder of Sunrise Events, who cycled hundreds of kilometres to fundraise and remind us that Every Baby Matters.

Every photo tells the story of a partnership over many years to support improvements in newborn care, one we can all be proud of. The photos tell a story of years of walking side by side to transform newborn care. A partnership built on trust, compassion, and lasting impact.