In July, Bayer HealthCare announced that it awarded nearly $2.5 million to 20 individuals from nine countries through its Bayer Hemophilia Awards Program (BHAP). The program supports innovative research and educational initiatives globally. The awardees, selected by a committee of internationally recognized experts in hemophilia treatment, were honored during the 2009 International Society on Thrombosis and Haemostasis (ISTH) XXII Congress, July 11-16, 2009, in Boston, MA.
The 2009 award recipients for each of the BHAP categories were as follows:
Special Project Awards (Provide support for a wide range of scientific research in the field of hemophilia):
- Tom Howard, Greater Los Angeles VA Healthcare System, USA
- Maurizio Margaglione, University of Foggia, Italy
- Gerry Nicolaes, Cardiovascular Research Institute Maastricht, The Netherlands
- Gary Nelsestuen, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, USA
- Keiji Nogami, Nara Medical University, Japan
Early Career Investigator Awards (Provide salary support and research funds for junior faculty members to undertake mentored basic and/or clinical research projects in the bleeding disorders field):
- Michael Horn, University Hospital of Bern, Switzerland
- Sukesh Nair, Christian Medical College, Vellore, India
- Denise Sabatino, University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, Philadelphia, USA
- Simona Siboni, University Of Milan, Italy
- Janice Staber, University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics, Iowa City, USA
Clinical Training Awards (Facilitate the development of specific clinical expertise for applicants who have completed medical training and have an interest in pursuing a career as a hemophilia clinician):
- Matthew Gorman, University of California, San Francisco, USA
- Femke van Herrewegen, Academic Medical Center, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
- Luca Andrea Lotta, University Of Milan, Italy
- Danielle Nance, Puget Sound Blood Center, Seattle, USA
Caregiver Awards (Recognize the essential role of caregivers and allied health professionals in the care of patients with hemophilia. The awards are designed to support this role by promoting continuing education):
- Debra Honig, Rush Hemophilia and Thrombophilia Center, Chicago, USA
- Kim Huot, National Institute of Public Health, Phnom Penh City, Cambodia
- Piet de Kleijn, University Medical Center, Utrecht, The Netherlands
- Geethani Kuruppuarachchi, Medical Research Institute, Colombo, Sri Lanka
- Hassan Fathelrahman Mahdi, Sudan University of Science and Technology, Khartoum, Sudan
- Sanjeev Padankatti, Christian Medical College, Vellore, India
“Bayer’s continued support of the BHAP program - now in its seventh year - is part of a collaborative academic-industry effort to increase understanding of hemophilia and other bleeding disorders in an effort to improve the lives of patients and their families,” said David Lillicrap, MD, chairman of the BHAP Grants, Review and Awards Committee and professor in the Department of Pathology and Molecular Medicine, Queens University, Kingston, Canada. “This year’s applications were outstanding and, on behalf of the entire review committee, we look forward to the positive impact that these projects’ results will have on the global hemophilia community.”
Bayer also announced the recipients of the 2009 World Federation of Hemophilia’s (WFH) International Hemophilia Nursing Fellowship. A Bayer-supported initiative, the fellowship provides hemophilia education and training to nurses in developing countries, areas where hemophilia-trained healthcare professionals are in short supply. Three recipients were selected out of a pool of 59 applications from eight countries. The awardees were:
- Dayang Sumarni Binti Abd Aziz from Malaysia, to be trained in Melbourne, Australia
- Blanca Nieves Maradiaga Duarte from Honduras, to be trained in Houston, TX
- Ana Josefa Garcia Sierra from Dominican Republic, to be trained in Buenos Aires, Argentina
“Worldwide, about 70 percent of people with hemophilia go undiagnosed, and 75 percent do not receive adequate treatment, the majority of whom live in developing countries,” said Mark Skinner, WFH President. “Providing nursing professionals from these areas with the necessary training and tools to recognize and treat hemophilia is critical to improving the lives of thousands of people living with the disorder. We appreciate the support Bayer has provided to this program to make it a success.”
Source: Reuters, July 14 & 15, 2009