Financial Incentives to Quit Smoking, "Patient Voices" and Research Into Malaria in Young Children Scoop Prizes in the Second International BMJ Group Awards

LONDON, March 10, 2010 - A campaign of financial incentives to help quit smoking; a project to
help change attitudes of doctors to patients; and research into the
prevention of death from severe malaria in children scooped three of the top
prizes at the second international BMJ Group Awards ceremony held tonight.

The winner of the Lifetime Achievement Award went to Professor Marleen
Temmerman for her commitment to improving women's reproductive and sexual
health and rights, especially in Africa.

The BMJ Group Awards, held in association with MDDUS, recognise and
celebrate excellence in healthcare across the globe. The categories reflect
the values of the Group and include awards for corporate social
responsibility, clinical research, healthcare communication and medical
education. This year, for the first time, there were also awards given to the
Junior Doctor of the Year, and the Primary and Secondary Team of the Year.

The ceremony, held in London, was presented by broadcaster and comedian
Tony Hawks and was attended by some of the most influential men and women in
healthcare from around the world.

The Leonard Davis Institute in Philadelphia won the Award for Getting
Research into Practice for creating a partnership with The General Electric
Corporation to test financial incentives to help smokers quit and convincing
the company to implement this approach for all its 152,000 US employees this
year.

Pip Hardy and Tony Sumner won the Award for Excellence in Healthcare
Education for their Patient Voices programme - an internet-based digital
storytelling scheme that allows viewers a glimpse into the lives of those who
deliver and those who receive care. It has achieved a powerful impact on the
attitudes of health care professionals and the stories are used as
educational tools by royal colleges and universities in the UK and
internationally.

Dr Melba Gomes, and her colleagues at the World Health Organization
(WHO), won the Research Paper of the Year Award for their outstanding study
into the prevention of death and disability from severe malaria in young
children.

Junior Doctor of the Year, in a strong international field, went to Dr
Evan Wood at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, Canada.

The Primary Care Team of the Year is the Lonsdale Medical Centre in
London for their work in adolescent depression and the Secondary Team of the
Year is The Emergency Retrieval Service in Scotland for their work in
transforming the care and transfer of seriously ill and injured patients in
remote and rural Scotland.

This year's Health Communicator of the Year is Sarah Boseley, The
Guardian's Health Editor, for her articles about the lack of access to
essential medicines for poor people in the developing world, particularly in
Uganda.

The Quality Improvement Award went to Society for Cardiothoracic Surgery
in Great Britain and Ireland for its work in collecting and publishing
detailed accurate data on outcomes.

Dr Adrian Hopper and Dr Mark Kinirons, who work together at Guy's and St
Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust, won the Award for Clinical Leadership.

Finally, the Award for Corporate Social Responsibility went to The Green
Team at St. Michael's Hospital, in Toronto, Canada who have enabled the
hospital to save energy, recycle waste, and reduce water consumption.

Winner of the Lifetime Achievement Award, Professor Temmerman is a
courageous campaigner on behalf of women's health. As Professor of Obstetrics
and Gynaecology at the University Hospital in Belgium, Head of the Obstetrics
and Gynaecology department at the Ghent University Hospital, and a senator in
the Belgian Parliament, Professor Temmerman powerfully combines politics and
medicine.

She created the International Centre for Reproductive Health, based in
Ghent and Kenya, one of the world's centres of excellence in reproductive and
sexual health and rights.

Professor Temmerman has also published more than 250 scientific articles
and four books, coached more than 120 research projects, and is a consultant
for WHO and other international organisations.

Speaking after the ceremony, Professor Temmerman said: "This award gives
me the forum to highlight the values and the topics that are important to me
and to ask for attention and commitment from the scientific and political
communities of this world for women's health and rights worldwide. Winning
this award means a lot, as it is a recognition of our work - not only of its
scientific value but also of the importance of combining science with social
responsibility and social values."

Professor Gordon Dickson, CEO of the Medical and Dentists Defence Union
of Scotland MDDUS said: "MDDUS is proud to sponsor the BMJ Group Awards. The
awards are a great opportunity to celebrate the expertise and commitment of
those who work so hard in the Health Service both here and internationally to
deliver high quality care for patients."

Visit groupawards.bmj.com for the full list of winners.
Photographs of the winners are also available on request

The other sponsors of the BMJ Group Awards are: GSK, NHS Evidence, The
Royal College of General Practitioners Foundation, MSD, The NHS Medical
Directorate, The Health Foundation, Mckinsey and Company, HCL plc, Alliance
Boots, BUPA, Orange, Medisave and the RAF.

    For further information or to arrange an interview with any of the
    winners, please contact: 

    Richard Price, Awards Press Officer
    Mobile: +44(0)7703-486-522
    Email: richard@interpretinternational.com

    or

    Emma Dickinson, BMJ Group Press Office, London, UK
    Tel: +44(0)20-7383-6529; Mobile: +44(0)7825-118-107
    Email: edickinson@bmjgroup.com

For further information or to arrange an interview with any of the winners, please contact: Richard Price, Awards Press Officer, Mobile: +44(0)7703-486-522, Email: richard at interpretinternational.com; or Emma Dickinson, BMJ Group Press Office, London, UK, Tel: +44(0)20-7383-6529; Mobile: +44(0)7825-118-107, Email: edickinson at bmjgroup.com