Originally established in 1991, with support from the Hospital for Tropical Diseases Ho Chi Minh City, The Health Service of Ho Chi Minh City and  the Wellcome Trust, OUCRU has developed strong links not only with HTD, but also other hospitals in HCMC, Hanoi and several provinces throughout Vietnam. In 2002 the research capacity of the unit expanded with the building of a dedicated Institute for Clinical Research, jointly funded by the Vietnamese Government and the Wellcome Trust, in the HTD grounds. This Institute houses the routine hospital laboratories, the laboratory research and the administrative centre of OUCRU.