Public health prizes and awards Ihsan Doğramacı Family Health Foundation PrizeA paediatrician and child health specialist by profession, Ihsan Doğramacı was one of the co-signatories of the Constitution of WHO at the International Health Conference held in New York in 1946. Professor Ihsan Doğramacı, established the Ihsan Doğramacı Family Health Foundation in 1980 to promote and raise the standard of family health by acknowledging individuals who have given distinguished service in this field. Illustrating his vision of family health, Professor Doğramacı said in 1981 when receiving the Léon Bernard Foundation prize: “We left the hospital for the community, bringing medical facilities directly to the people rather than waiting for the people to come to the consulting room or the emergency unit (…). We took an interest not only in the family’s health but also in its welfare and social conditions.” Further, he added: “Great strides have been made in technology (…). It is up to us to apply our knowledge to influence the policy-makers and holders of the economic and technological means to see that these measures are applied worldwide. Only in this way can we hope to attain our goal of health for all.”
The Foundation awards a public health prize every two years, consisting of a gold-plated silver medal, a certificate and a honorarium for services in the field of family health. The amount of the honorarium is determined by the Foundation Selection Panel in consultation with WHO and in accordance with the accumulated interest on the Foundation’s capital.
The Prize is awarded at a special ceremony during a plenary of the World Health Assembly. It is presented by the President of the World Health Assembly, together with the Director-General of the WHO and a representative of the foundation.
Dr Jamila Taiseer Yasser Al Abri (Oman) accepting the Ihsan Doğramacı Family Health Foundation Prize in May 2024
Procedure for the proposal and selection of candidates
Any national health administration, the Executive Director of the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) and the Bureau of the International Children's Centre (Ankara), as well as any former recipient of the prize, may propose candidates for the prize to the Foundation Selection Panel.
The nomination must be accompanied by a written statement of the reasons for proposing the candidate. Candidatures are submitted to the Director-General of the World Health Organization, who transmits them to the Award Selection Panel.
The Award Selection Panel, in a private meeting, considers the candidates for the Award and proposes the name(s) of the recipient(s) of the award to the Executive Board. The Executive Board of WHO designates the recipients of the prize on the proposal of the Foundation Selection Panel.
