The Patient Awards Night held on 18th May 2017 at the RACV Club in Melbourne was a tremendous success. The night was well attended and the presentation by Professor Ian Frazer was one of the highlights.

As the 2006 Australian of Year Professor Ian Frazer won the 2005 CSIRO Eureka Prize for developing the HPV vaccine which protects against the two high-risk HPV types which cause 70% of cervical cancers in women and 90% of HPV-related cancers in men. Professor Frazer is also the president of Cancer Council Australia, and advises the World Health Organization and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation on papillomavirus vaccines and was the recipient of the Prime Minister’s Prize for Science in 2008. Professor Frazer teaches immunology to undergraduate and graduate students of The University of Queensland.

Planning has already commenced for the 2018 Patient Awards Night.

The AWARDS  presented

MOST OUTSTANDING GP–Dr Elaine Owen

Dr Elaine Owen was selected as the most outstanding GP as she went way beyond what a Patient would expect from even the best GP.

  • She went to courses and conferences to improve her knowledge in relation to her patients special needs.
  • She became an expert in pain management.
  • She showed kindness and empathy.
  • She made herself freely available.
  • She referred her clients onto the appropriate specialists when required. And even bulk billed those who were in financial stress. The GP we all aspire to have.

BEST HEALTH REPORTER –Paul Cross

PharmaDispatch, a publication owned and operated by Daily Dispatch Pty Ltd, is dedicated to breaking news and commentary on the Australian pharmaceutical and life sciences sector. The publisher of PharmaDispatch is Paul Cross, a former ministerial adviser to two Australian Health Ministers and senior pharmaceutical industry executive in Australia and the US.

It is an independent news service providing coverage, opinion and analysis. The service, which was launched in 2012, aims to provide a new perspective on policy, funding, political and sector specific matters. The publication is recognised for its in depth and balanced coverage of news and issues impacting the Pharmaceutical industry. Paul goes the extra yard in getting the story behind the press release or announcements, analysing the impact of decisions on patients, industry and government. His industry and political connections are second to none. His work ethic is a throwback to the golden days of journalism where hours of legwork, getting on the phone to contacts and having a nose for the story, were the hallmarks of good and balanced reporting.

THE PATIENT INNOVATION –Simon Carter

The Patient Innovation Award has been established to celebrate the innovators from our community who have stood out with the impact and novelty of their solutions. This person has won this award for innovating, sharing and improving lives while facing adversity and challenges.

  • Simon is passionate about using technology to accelerate change and empowerment-in diabetes and beyond.
  • He has been in software development for 30 years, and has worked in Transport, Utilities, Pharmaceuticals and Finance.
  • Simon is CTO of a data mining software company, and moonlights for 13CABS – as an Anti-Uber solution architect.
  • Simon has had Type 1 diabetes for 27 years, and has a 12-year-old daughter who was diagnosed 10 years ago at the age of 2.
  • Simon’s innovation is PredictBGL – a sophisticated dosing App for people with insulin-dependent diabetes and their carers.

The App simplifies the five-times-a-day guesswork of calculating doses from blood sugars and carbs, and for the first time ever, predicts dangerous low blood.

sugars up to 8 hours ahead. PredictBGL uses patented technology to show future blood sugars with greater accuracy than $5,000 continuous glucose monitors.

APA HOSPITAL AWARDS 2017

These awards are based on a hospital or health district’s ability to demonstrate their commitment to transparency through using a public online platform for their patient feedback and complaints.

The selection of the most outstanding hospitals were based according to the following criteria:

  • The percentage of stories that they responded to
  • The timeliness of their response to stories posted
  • The number of improvements or changes that were planned or made as a result of the feedback
  • The percentage of stories where the author found the response helpful

MOST OUTSTANDING CITY HOSPITAL–Eastern Health

The top three most outstanding city hospitals/health districts were Eastern Health (Melbourne), East Metropolitan (Perth) and South-Eastern Sydney. What they all have in common is the word East! and the winner who received the highest scores was Eastern Health.

  • 100% of stories responded to;
  • 93% of their response to stories posted within 24hours;
  • 5% of their stories posted led to improvements that were planned or made as a result of the feedback;
  • 22% of stories where the author noted that they found the response helpful.

MOST OUTSTANDING REGIONAL HOSPITAL–Central Gippsland Health Service

The top three most outstanding regional hospitals/health districts were Kimberley (WA), Central Gippsland (Victoria), and Mid-West (WA). and the winner who has consistently demonstrated their commitment to public online feedback was Central Gippsland Health Service.

  • 100% of stories responded to;
  • 82% of their response to stories posted within 24hours;
  • 47% of their stories posted led to improvements that were planned or made as a result of the feedback;
  • 41% of stories where the author noted that they found the response helpful.