In the justification of award of this prestigious prize, the Awarding Committee emphasised that the organisers’ intention (…) is to reward during the Health Market Forum among others those institutions, companies and persons who facilitate Polish scientists’ and doctors’ work on innovative research projects. Undoubtedly, the Foundation for the Development of Polish Pharmacy and Medicine, founded by Polpharma in 2001, deserves such a distinction. The mission of the Foundation, implemented consistently, is to support the development of pharmaceutical and medical sciences by financing scientific research in those fields. The funds allocated for the statutory activities of the Foundation originate in their entirety from Polpharma’s budget.The most important projects implemented by the Foundation are the competition for the financing of research projects in the field of pharmaceutical and medical sciences, organised every year (45 grants have been provided so far in seven editions of the competition), and the scholarship programme initiated in 2006”.

 

Thanking for this prestigious award, Wojciech Kuźmierkiewicz, the President of the Foundation’s Management Board, said among other things that he considered the award to be not only an expression of recognition for 8 years of the Foundation’s operations, but also a form of gratitude from the medical circles to the members of the Scientific Board and the Foundation’s Management Board for their wonderful, noted and appreciated social work for the benefit of the organisation. Wojciech Kuźmierkiewicz also added that Jerzy Starak, the Chairman of the Supervisory Board of Polpharma, deserved special thanks for the establishment of the Foundation, as did the Company Management Board for the consistent financing of its statutory activities.

 

The Good Sides of Health Market Awards this year were granted for the first time. However, Rynek Zdrowia awarded the Portraits of Polish Medicine distinctions to outstanding figures in health care for the fifth time. The recipients of the distinction this year included Mayor of Chorzów Marek Kopel, Minister of Health Ewa Kopacz, micro-surgeon Prof. Ewa Siemionow, as well as Prof. Piotr Kuna, the Member of the Scientific Board of the Foundation, who became the winner in the ‘manager’ category.