$1m Healthcare Innovators Award Launched

GSK and Save the Children have launched a $1 million healthcare innovation award which rewards innovations in healthcare that help to reduce child deaths in developing countries and have the potential to reach more children.

Until September 7, organisations from across the country can nominate innovative healthcare approaches they have implemented. These innovations must have resulted in tangible improvements to under-five child survival, be sustainable and have the scope to be scaled-up and replicated.

The award is one of a number of initiatives from GSK and Save the Children's five-year partnership which combines the two organisations' expertise and skills with the aim to help save one million children's lives.

Mark Pfister, General Manager for GSK in Ghana, stated that when it comes to reaching the most vulnerable Ghanaian children with quality healthcare, no single organisation has all the answers.

“So we're always searching for new and different ideas, wherever they might be. Our award recognises that some of the best solutions to development challenges come from people living with them.

Tough conditions can stimulate innovation, generating solutions that are relevant and adaptable. If these bright ideas can be shared across countries and continents, the impact could be profound,” he said.

Outlining the focus of this year's award, Ali Forder, Director of Programme, Policy and Quality at Save the Children, added that extraordinary progress has been made in recent years to reduce the number of children dying before their fifth birthday.

“Despite this progress, more than five million children still die each year and millions of children are being left behind. We want to seek out and recognise ways in which these children can be reached,” he said.

A judging panel, made up of experts from the fields of public health, science and academia, will award all or part of the funds to one or more of the best healthcare innovations which will be announced in December.

Since 2013, more than a dozen inventive approaches – from a breast milk pasteurisation device to an affordable diarrhoea treatment kit – have been recognised through the award.

By Jamila Akweley Okertchiri