- The most awaited healthcare event in South Asia recognizes the impactful contributions of the Stars of South Asian Healthcare
- Four Indian doctors win BMJ Awards South Asia 2018 including Dr. Vimarsh Raina from Chimera Translational Research Fraternity New Delhi, Dr. Aparna Hegde from ARMMAN Mumbai, Dr. Avi Kumar Bansal from National JALMA Institute for Leprosy and Other Mycobacterial Diseases Agra and Dr. Omesh Kumar Bharti from State Institute of Health & Family Welfare, Govt of Himachal Pradesh
British Medical Journal (BMJ) India organized the 5th edition of the BMJ Awards South Asia 2018 on December 1 at Hilton Chennai. The top healthcare dignitaries in the country attended the award ceremony. The esteemed panel of jury members consisted of eminent thought leaders, senior experienced doctors, and industry veterans from various healthcare organizations.
This year too, nominations were invited from the South Asian region, including India, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Maldives, Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Nepal in numerous categories like healthcare quality, medical education, healthcare innovation, and research. More than 1500 nominations were received for the Awards from across South Asia and were shortlisted to 30 nominations across 10 categories. Winners were presented with a trophy and a certificate in the presence of India’s most senior healthcare professionals, industry executives, government officials, academicians, and researchers.
The Chief Guest for the Award ceremony was Dr. V.K. Paul, Member Niti Aayog, who addressed the audience and gave away an Award providing encouragement to the winners and finalists alike.
Speaking on the occasion, Chief Guest Dr. V.K.Paul said, “I salute this great institution The BMJ, and wish you best for leading healthcare professionals to truth, knowledge and innovation. I congratulate all 30 finalists for making into the prestigious awards and specially mention the international guests for making it here from 9 countries of South Asia. The BMJ is a journal that we all aspired to be featured in and most of us failed to do so. I am fortunate to have been featured in its pages couple of times and I still cherish those pages. In our time, we used to refer 5-6 journals to gain knowledge, today people do not do it. With its various initiatives like BMJ global health, am happy that BMJ has taken initiative to change this scenario.”
Following are the winners of the prestigious 5th BMJ South Asia Awards 2018.
| Category | Winner | Institution |
| Infectious Disease Initiative of the Year | Dr. Avi Kumar Bansal | National JALMA Institute for Leprosy and Other Mycobacterial Diseases Agra |
| Mental Health Team of the Year | Dr. Hiranya Wijesundra | District General Hospital – Ampara Sri Lanka |
| Research Paper of the Year | Dr. Omesh Kumar Bharti | State Institute of Health & Family Welfare, Govt of Himachal Pradesh |
| Post Graduate Thesis of the Year | Dr. Zainab Hasan | Dow University of Health Sciences, Karachi Pakistan |
| Quality Improvement & Patient Safety team of the year |
Dr. Kulesh Bahadur Thapa | Nepal Ambulance Service, Kathmandu Nepal |
| Surgical team of the year | Dr. Bawantha Gamage | Department of Surgery, Faculty of Medical Sciences, University of Sri Jayawardenapura Sri Lanka |
| Non- Communicable Disease Initiative of the Year |
Dr. Kanij Sultana | Population Council Dhaka |
| Excellence in Medical Education | Dr. Kyaw Myo | University of Medicine, Mandalay |
| Healthcare Innovation of the Year | Dr. Vimarsh Raina | Chimera Translational Research Fraternity New Delhi |
| Maternal & Child Health Team of the Year | Dr. Aparna Hegde | ARMMAN Mumbai |
Dr. Fiona Godlee, Editor-in-Chief, The BMJ said, “I am happy to be part of the 5th edition of the BMJ Awards South Asia. Over the years, the Awards have grown in stature and credibility. The jury had to evaluate 30 high quality entries to select the final winners. The work done by all of nominees is of superlative value that also makes a positive impact on the lives of many people.”
Mr. Prashant Mishra, Managing Director, BMJ India, and South Asia said ‘Over the past five years, the Awards have attained the stature of a must-attend event in South Asia and have been recognized as an important initiative in providing much needed recognition to healthcare projects in the region. We are happy to celebrate the fifth edition of this illustrious event and hope the winners inspire other healthcare professionals to continue to advance healthcare through their work”
The BMJ Awards are conferred after a rigorous and thorough evaluation process and are awarded to commend those who have accomplished the most impactful healthcare work in South Asia.