Happy Returns
Vietnamese-born nurse gives back to immigrant communities in the States and to residents of her
native country

By Linda Childers
July 14, 2003

As a young girl growing up in Vietnam, Diep Pham dreamed of becoming a nurse.

Both her mother and grandmother worked as nurse-midwives, and Pham remembers the passion and enthusiasm they shared for bringing babies into the world.

When Pham turned 12, her family moved to the United States. She found herself starting over in a new country, yet she never abandoned her dream of becoming a nurse.

Today, Pham, MN, MBA, FNP, has exceeded the goals she set for herself many years ago in Vietnam. She has worked as a nurse for almost 20 years, and has developed and implemented many innovative programs.

Following in her mother’s and grandmother’s footsteps, Pham began her nursing career working in the labor and delivery field. In 1984, while working at Fountain Valley (Calif.) Regional Hospital, she introduced the first Vietnamese-prepared childbirth classes offered in the United States.

Six years later, she introduced the first observation nursery at Saddleback Memorial Hospital in Laguna Hills, Calif. In 1999, she assisted in the development and implementation of the spine care center at the University of California, Irvine Medical Center in Orange, Calif.

Pham is modest when she discusses her accomplishments. At 25, she was diagnosed with endometrial cancer and underwent subsequent chemotherapy. Being a cancer survivor, she said, has given her a new lease on life and fuels her passion to help others.

“I really feel that life is what you make of it and you should enjoy every moment,” Pham said.

Offering childbirth classes to pregnant women in their native language was simply a continuation of her outreach efforts to bridge the cultural divide for Vietnamese natives living in the United States. As the mother of a 9-year old daughter, Pham knew that expectant mothers would be better prepared for childbirth if they could fully understand their options.

“We have more than 350,000 Vietnamese people residing in Orange County,” Pham said. “That’s the largest population of Vietnamese natives outside of Vietnam.”

Today, Pham works as a professor in the nursing department at Golden West College in Huntington Beach, Calif., but outreach to Vietnamese immigrants continues to play an important role in her life.

“There is a tremendous need to educate Vietnamese immigrants about the American health care system,” Pham said. “Many of these people do not speak English, and some feel more comfortable seeking an herbalist for treatments rather than relying on Western medicine.”

Last summer, Pham founded the National Association of Vietnamese Nurses, a nonprofit organization and the first professional organization dedicated to promoting networking and professional development among Vietnamese nurses and improving the health of the Vietnamese community.

Pham has received positive feedback from other Vietnamese nurses and has enlisted association members to join her in community outreach efforts to Vietnamese residents residing in Orange County.

“We’ve visited senior centers and discussed health concerns and the importance of annual exams,” Pham said. “We also are offering classes on topics including breast and cervical cancer prevention.”

Pham would like to see the association provide mentoring programs for Vietnamese nurses and students hoping to enter the nursing profession.

“We’re committed to helping recruit and retain Vietnamese nurses and to provide them with professional development, leadership and continuing education,” Pham said.

Her outreach efforts aren’t limited to helping Vietnamese citizens living in Orange County. Several years ago, Pham joined forces with Project Vietnam, a missionary organization led by Quynh Kieu, MD. Project Vietnam is an international health project of the California Chapter 4 of the American Academy of Pediatrics.

The group, composed of medical volunteers from all backgrounds and specialty areas, travels to Vietnam twice a year to care for residents in the rural villages of Vietnam.

On her first mission, Pham returned to the country of her birth and assisted in conducting several lectures on women’s health issues at a hospital in Hanoi. She returned six months later to the rural village of Hoabinh to administer physical exams and treat patients.

“We saw 400 patients a day,” Pham said. “Children with cleft lips, senior citizens with hypertension, we treated many different kinds of ailments.” Pham quickly became addicted to missionary work and plans to return with Project Vietnam on future missions.

“It’s amazing to be a part of a team representing so many different cultures and medical specialties,” she said. “We’re all coming together to provide health care to people who desperately need and appreciate our services. It’s an incredible experience."