+ The 1st Global Philips AVENT Breastfeeding Prize and Symposium
The first Global Philips AVENT Breastfeeding Research Award
In 2009 Philips AVENT embarked on a campaign to stimulate and reward research into the promotion, protection and support of breastfeeding. The culmination of the First Global Philips AVENT Breastfeeding Research Award was an important milestone in furthering the understanding of the mother-infant relationship in respect of lactation and feeding.
The prize ceremony took place on 27 October 2009 in Berlin at the 9th World Congress of Perinatal Medicine where two winner teams, Sonia Venancio and Carlos A. Monteiro from Brasil (Social and Practical Aspects of Breastfeeding) and L. J. Kwist, B.W. Larsson and M.L. Hall-Lord et al (Evidence –based Research in Breastfeeding), had their work presented and were each awarded €15,000 to be used to further their breastfeeding research and clinical practice.
The challenge to find the best global breastfeeding research was set in collaboration with the Italian Society of Perinatal Medicine. It was judged by a panel of experts from the International Research Evaluation Committee (IREC) comprising of ; Prof Domenico Arduini (Italy), Dr Mary Fewtrell (UK), Prof Guido Moro (Italy), Dr H. Reyes Vazquez (Mexico), Prof Arturo Giustardi (Italy), Prof Ekhard Ziegler (USA), Dr Monika Stablum (Italy) and Ms Wong Boh Boi (Singapore). 40 entries were received from across the world and 11 of these papers were shortlisted for review by the panel who evaluated the work against strict marking criteria. From these, two winning entries emerged, and two further entries were commended.
The prize aims to encourage breastfeeding research in two key categories:
- Social and practical aspects of breastfeeding
- Evidence-based clinical research in breastfeeding
The winning papers were presented at a specially convened symposium during the 9th World Perinatal Congress which formed part of a joint venture with the Company’s partner Philips Children’s Medical Ventures.
The authors of the outstanding winning papers presented their evidence-based research on “The role of bacteria in lactational mastitis and some considerations of the use of antibiotic treatment” and explored “Individual and contextual determinants of exclusive breastfeeding in Sao Paolo, Brazil: a multilevel analysis”. Both papers have raised important learnings in the clinical management of these breastfeeding issues in the researchers’ respective countries and are already leading to changes in the way breastfeeding is supported.
Both award winners felt that the First Global Philips AVENT’s Prize for Breastfeeding Research had been a fantastic opportunity to increase knowledge and continue to raise awareness of the benefits of breastfeeding amongst the general public. Besides the exponential learning curve the prize offered, both teams welcomed the opportunity to increase the visibility of their work. For the other 40 participants from across the world, the competition meant that various aspects of breastfeeding had been explored which could lead to improved clinical applications.
If you are interested in participating in the next Philips AVENT Breastfeeding Research Award please e-mail us at: aventprofessional@philips.com
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