Presentation of 2016 Carlos Slim Health Awards.
30 June, 2016. Mexico City.
Amid the celebration of its 30th anniversary, the Carlos Slim Foundation carried out the presentation of its 2016 Health Awards at the Soumaya Museum. The ceremony was attended by Health Secretary José Narro Robles, IMSS Director General Mikel Arriola, and Mr. Carlos Slim Helú.
Dr. Roberto Tapia Conyer, director general of the Carlos Slim Foundation, introduced the winners of the 9th Edition of the Health Awards:
Research Trajectory: The Research Trajectory Award was presented to Mexico's Dr. Rafael Lozano Ascencio for his leadership in research and his innovative work contributing to the generation of more precise and efficient public health policies, both in Mexico and around the world.
Exceptional Institution : The Exceptional Institution Award was presented to Teensmart International, a Costa Rican organization whose mission is to convey health education and information, while offering accompaniment to children, teenagers, and youths from the ages of 10 to 24. The organization uses technology to provide information to young people regarding the prevention of six hazardous conducts: violence, the use of alcohol and other drugs, tobacco use, high-risk sexual activities, lack of physical activity, and poor nutrition.
The event also served to showcase the main results of the Carlos Slim Foundation's health programs. "The Foundation owes many of its achievements to the alliances that it has formed, both in Mexico and abroad, with public and private institutions, researchers, academics, and those who have dedicated their lives to working for others. These alliances have been, and will continue to be, essential for the multiplication of results. We are especially thankful to the Health Secretariat, with which we have worked together to help improve the lives of millions of Mexicans. Likewise, we work hand in hand with the IMSS–Prospera (Mexican Social Security Institute-Prospera program), the ISSSTE (Social Security and Services Institute for State Workers), and with state governments to reach more people," declared Marco Antonio Slim Domit, speaking on behalf of the Foundation.
Some of the most important achievements include the results of the following programs:
CASALUD. In an ongoing alliance with the Health Secretariat, the CASALUD model developed by the Foundation has been implemented in more than 12,000 public health centers attending to 1.7 million patients. And thanks to the MIDO® system (Integrated Measurement for Timely Detection), the weight, blood pressure, glucose levels, cholesterol levels, and kidney functions of more than half a million people has been evaluated, in order to prevent and detect chronic ailments and avoid complications.
The CASALUD model is part of the National Strategy Against Diabetes and Obesity, implemented in 26 states throughout the Republic. In the pursuit of transparency, all information pertaining to this model is available to the public on the website of the Mexican Observatory for Non-Transmissible Diseases (OMENT - www.oment.uanl.mx).
AMANECE. Through this program, the Foundation has benefited more than 926,000 pregnant women and their newborn babies, by means of a set of actions designed for timely, quality attention during and after pregnancy. This model operates through 35 maternal health networks in 11 states throughout the country.
Electronic Vaccination Card (CEV). The Foundation is also working on an overhaul of our country's Universal Vaccination Program. To this end, it developed the Electronic Vaccination Card, which is already operational in five states with a total 2.1 million children under the age of five.
Slim Initiative for Genomic Medicine. The Foundation backs research and the generation of knowledge in the field of genomics. A number of genes responsible for diseases have already been identified, as have possible treatments that could help to prevent and cure ailments such as cancer, diabetes, and kidney failure.
Kidney Health and Transplants. Support has been granted to 8,560 transplants, in an alliance with state governments, national health institutes, hospitals, and civil society organizations. this has been backed by the "Heroes for Life" campaign, which seeks to promote a culture of altruistic donation of organs and tissues.
Elimination of Disease in the World. In alliance with other organizations, the Foundation continues to take part in the 2015 fight that eradicated Onchocerciasis, or river blindness, from Mexico. Work is still underway and will continue until there is not a single case left in Latin America.
At the closure of the event, Dr. José Narro Robles recognized the work carried out by the Carlos Slim Foundation in the field of healthcare and other areas on occasion of its 30th anniversary, declaring that "these have been 30 years of work by a Foundation, conducted with caution, restraint, care, and discretion, which has nevertheless undoubtedly helped many thousands of Mexicans. If all of the assistance offered by the foundation were tallied, the award for the organization that does the most for the health and the social development of the Mexican people would be granted to the Carlos Slim Foundation," Narro declared.
The ceremony was also attended by former Health Secretaries José Ángel Córdova and Guillermo Soberón, as well as by representatives of international organizations such as UNICEF, UNFPA, the IADB, and prominent representatives of the health sector.
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