Nguyen Duy’s Journey to Champion Youth-Led Health Equity
From local advocate to global changemaker
A Young Leader’s Calling
At just 26, Nguyen Duy is more than a medical graduate; he is a force of change in Vietnam’s health equity landscape. As co-founder of the Network of Health Students Vietnam (NOHS Vietnam), Duy has spent years amplifying the voices of marginalized communities, from LGBTQ+ youth to rural populations. His advocacy journey took a transformative turn in 2024 when he became an AstraZeneca Young Health Program (YHP) Impact Fellow, joining a global cohort of leaders at the One Young World Summit in Montréal. This is the story of how a young advocate leveraged international platforms to drive local change and continues to shape the future of Vietnam’s healthcare system.
Bridging Medicine and Justice
Duy’s passion for health equity took root during his time at Hanoi Medical University. While training to become a doctor, he witnessed systemic biases that limited access to care: transgender patients facing discrimination, rural youths deprived of sexual health education, and medical students feeling powerless to address these inequities.
“I realized medicine alone couldn’t heal societal wounds,” Duy recalls. “We needed advocates who could bridge clinical practice and human rights.”
In response, he co-founded NOHS Vietnam, originally known as Project Poseidons, a youth-led nonprofit empowering medical students to champion health justice. Under his leadership, NOHS spearheaded initiatives like "Hi Me, I’m Here for You," a nationwide program training healthcare workers to better support transgender patients, thereby reducing stigma in clinical settings. He also launched "Doctor Love," a series of workshops providing sexual health education to over 5,000 rural adolescents, tackling deeply ingrained cultural taboos. Additionally, NOHS created "Youth Health Forums," offering students a space to engage directly with policymakers on issues like mental health and gender-based violence.
These efforts brought Duy recognition as a speaker at UNICEF and UN Women events, but his ambition extended beyond individual projects. He wanted to cultivate a sustainable network of youth advocates who could drive systemic change. This vision led him to the AstraZeneca YHP Fellowship.
A Global Springboard
In early 2024, Duy’s relentless advocacy earned him a spot as a YHP Impact Fellow, a program dedicated to supporting young leaders advancing health equity. His application stood out for its emphasis on “building sustainable youth networks,” a concept he believed was crucial for long-term impact.
Attending the One Young World Summit in Montréal was a turning point. Immersed in an international exchange of ideas, Duy engaged with world leaders, including Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, discussing the role of AI in healthcare, and listened to Margaret Atwood deliver a compelling keynote on storytelling as activism. He found invaluable mentorship from Dr. Felipe Paullier, UN Assistant Secretary-General for Youth Affairs, who guided him on integrating youth voices into policy. Among the most profound experiences was participating in the “Indigenous Voices in Health” roundtable. There, Duy shared Vietnam’s struggles with healthcare access for ethnic minorities and was struck by the similarities between these challenges and those faced by Canada’s First Nations communities. “A delegate approached me afterward, and we realized our communities, though oceans apart, face the same battles,” Duy says. “That solidarity fuels my work.”
Returning Home, Turning Ideas into Action
Armed with insights from the Summit, Duy returned to Vietnam determined to empower youth to drive policy change. He collaborated with YHP in a consultation workshop about Youth-Friendly Health Services and helping adolescents to advocate for their healthcare needs. In one session, 15-year-old Minh, a high school student from Ha Noi, practiced presenting his research on mental health stigma to a panel of mock government officials. Months later, Minh stood before Vietnam’s Ministry of Education & Training, urging policymakers to expand school-based counseling services. “Duy taught us that our stories matter,” Minh reflects. “Now I know that even a teenager can influence leaders.”
Beyond policy advocacy, Duy turned his attention to menstrual equity. Inspired by discussions on gender equality at the Summit, he co-launched Free Pads Vietnam, a project training visually impaired women to educate communities about menstrual health. The initiative distributed over 10,000 reusable pads while challenging deeply rooted taboos. “Many girls used to miss school due to period shame,” says Thao, a project participant. “Now, we’re teaching boys and men to support, not stigmatize, us.”
“The Summit didn’t just expand my mind—it expanded my belief in what’s possible, Now, every time I mentor a young advocate, I see a future leader who will go further than I ever could.”
Building a Legacy
For Duy, the milestones of 2024 are just the beginning. Looking ahead to 2025, he is spearheading multiple initiatives aimed at expanding youth advocacy in Vietnam. One such project is HerOwnChoice, a media campaign under HADEUS Vietnam that uses films and podcasts to combat gender stereotypes and advocate for reproductive autonomy. The campaign will train over 100 rural girls to share their personal stories, challenging harmful norms such as child marriage. “If my mom had this platform,” Duy reflects, “she might’ve pursued her dreams instead of marrying at 16.”
Recognizing the need for structural change in medical education, Duy is also working with NOHS Vietnam to co-design Vietnam’s first university-level curriculum on LGBTQ+ health. By partnering with medical schools, he aims to ensure future doctors are equipped with the knowledge and empathy necessary to care for queer patients. “Ignorance perpetuates harm,” he stresses. “This curriculum will save lives.”
His broader vision includes scaling the youth advocacy network to mentor over 500 young leaders across all 63 provinces of Vietnam. Through digital toolkits, peer mentorship circles, and an annual National Youth Summit, Duy seeks to create a movement that will endure beyond his own leadership.
A Ripple Effect of Change
Nguyen Duy’s journey is a testament to the power of youth-led action. From advocating for rural health equity in Vietnam to speaking on global stages, he exemplifies how young people, when given the right tools and support, can drive meaningful change.
