Inpatients’ needs of social support and the response of Hanoi Heart Hospital in 2025

Objective: To describe the inpatient patients’ needs of social support and the hospiatal’s ressponsiveness to these needs at Hanoi Heart Hospital in 2025. Methods: A quantitative cross-sectional study was conducted from November 2024 to October 2025 among inpatients at the clinical departments of Hanoi Heart Hospital. A total of 193 patients were interviewed face-to-face using a structured questionnaire, which included items assessing patients’ needs for social work support and the hospital’s responsiveness, measured on a Likert scale. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics to determine patients’ needs and the hospital’s level of reponse for each specific social work activity. Main findings: Patients’ needs for information–counseling and communication–awareness enhancement were high, exceeding 83%, and the hospital’s responsiveness in this domain generally met patient expectations, with rates above 96%. For psychological–social support, both the proportion of patients reporting needs and their assessment of the hospital’s responsiveness were at moderate levels. Notably, psychological therapy support and opportunities to participate in cultural or sports activities had the lowest ratings, with patient needs below 51% and responsiveness below 80%. Regarding resource mobilization and financial assistance, patients expressed limited needs for support related to personal living expenses, donated items, or free meals. However, the need for the hospital to provide temporary resting areas for family caregivers was relatively high (71.5%). Despite this, the hospital’s responsiveness in this area remained low and did not adequately meet patient needs. Conclusions: Patients demonstrated diverse needs for social work support; however, the hospital’s level of responsiveness varied across different categories of support. These findings reflect constraints related to insufficient dedicated personnel, limitations in infrastructure, and unstable operational funding.