Save the Children and GSK, a global pharmaceutical and healthcare company, have announced the launch of their third annual US$1 million Healthcare Innovation Award that rewards innovations in healthcare that have helped to reduce child deaths in developing countries.
Until 7 September 2015, organisations from across developing countries can nominate examples of innovative health approaches they have implemented. These approaches must have resulted in tangible improvements to under-5 child survival rates, be sustainable and have the potential to be scaled-up and replicated.
Finance remains a critical component of innovative health approaches and while the award does not deal specifically with finance for healthcare innovation, finance does feature. Funding provided through the award is an integral element of helping these innovations scale up and develop and build recognition of their work.
As well as providing funding, this year’s Healthcare Innovation Award will provide a platform to review and evaluate new approaches to health system challenges, to recognise those that are having an impact, and share their learnings with the wider global health community. Co-chaired by Sir Andrew Witty, CEO of GSK, and Justin Forsyth, CEO of Save the Children, 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.
“Creating and implementing these innovative approaches can be costly,” Ramil Burden, Vice-President for Africa and Developing Countries, GSK told Development Finance. “Through our Healthcare Innovation Award with Save the Children, we want to give those ideas that are saving lives of children under five the resources needed to help expand their reach. Funds provided through the award give them an important springboard, but the profile and recognition offered are equally important to their expansion. By giving these ideas an opportunity to scale up and save more children’s lives, we hope this will act as a catalyst for others to invest in healthcare innovation.”
Both GSK and Save the Children cite last year’s Ebola epidemic as an example of the need for new innovative solutions and approaches to address the systemic challenges that weaken healthcare systems.
“Innovation is critical to increasing access to healthcare and transforming the prospects of those living in the poorest nations,” added Burden. “Often the best ideas come from those closest to the challenge and developing countries have devised thoughtful ways of improving health. But these pockets of innovation can remain under the radar, only reaching a fraction of the population they could benefit.”
The partnership, established in May 2013, aims to save the lives of 1 million children. Approaches to innovative finance have been among some of the previous winners. In 2014, the University of Nairobi, Kenya was awarded US$120,000 for their bar-coded Vaccination/Mother-Child Wellness Card that tracks vaccinations and rewards mothers with discounts on farm products. The vaccination card automatically updates when a newborn is registered and each time the child and/or mother receives a vaccine. It then allows the mother discounts on farm products, such as seeds and fertilizer, from Agrovets shops run by the University’s partner agency.
Further details on the judging process and criteria can be found online at http://myg.sk/Save-HealthcareInnovationAward. Entries close 7 September with winners expected to be announced in November.