Recognising excellence in healthcare

Digital innovation

For projects using novel digital approaches that demonstrably improve patient care.

Finalist:

• Closing the COPD Control Gap: A Digital Trend-Based Scoring System Delivering Measurable Clinical and Economic Impact: Anuradha Vutukuru
• “TRUST in Your Pocket”: A Scalable Digital Intervention for Relapse Prevention in Alcohol Use Disorder: Alvin Joseph
• A Patient-Co-Designed AI-Enabled Positional Therapy for Posture-Related Obstructive Sleep Apnea in Southern India: Vamsi Karatam
• Reverse transcription loop-mediated isothermal amplification for dengue detection in the early stage: Tanzila Rawnuck

Quality improvement

For teams applying original improvement methods to strengthen clinical outcomes.

Finalist:

• Phased implementation of surgical safety care bundle in a multispecialty, tertiary care teaching hospital: a quality improvement project: Lallu Joseph
• AID-CARE: A Structured Workflow Bundle to Improve Timely Completion of Curative Radiotherapy for Cervical Cancer: Sreenivasa Rao Bonala
• Reducing Turnaround Time to Appropriate Antibiotic Therapy in ICU Sepsis Patients: A Quality Improvement Project Using PDSA-Driven Bundled Intervention: Radhakrishna Warrier
• Transforming Hip Fracture Care in Sri Lanka: Development and Implementation of the First Multidisciplinary Orthogeriatric Pathway: Maheshi Wijayabandara

Sustainability and climate action

For initiatives reducing the environmental impact of healthcare practice.

Finalist:

• Comparative quantification of aerosol-generating potential in various dental treatment procedures and their reduction measures: A quasi-randomised trial: Rajkumar Maurya
• Mission Wasteless: Greening the Operating Theatre: Venkatesh Rengaraj
• Carbon-SUSTAIN study – Low emission, carbon- efficient, climate – sensitive hypofractionation radiotherapy for precision cancer care in traffic dense mega city: Chandrashekara Reddy
• Association of fine particulate matter exposure during pregnancy and stillbirth rates in Pakistan: a cross-sectional study: Asad Allana

Maternal and child health team of the year

For integrated projects improving access and affordability of maternal
and child health services.

Finalist:

• Bundles of Hope: Transforming Preterm Outcomes in a Resource-Limited NICU: Sharmy M Hassan
• SMALL STEP: Saving Mothers and Little Lives. Sickle Cell Screening, Treatment, Education in Pregnancy and Postpartum: Gayatri Desai
• Effectiveness of a multipronged intervention strategy in reducing the incidence of gestational diabetes mellitus among high-risk pregnant mothers attending primary health care centres of Puducherry: a cluster randomized controlled trial: Mohammed Kais
• Integrated Child Nutrition, Food Security, and Health Systems Response During Sri Lanka’s Economic Crisis (2022–2025): A National Evidence-to-Action Programme: Guwani Liyanage

Excellence in medical education

For innovations that improve medical education, training or performance.

Finalist:

• International Public Health Management Development Program (IPHMDP): Sonu Goel
• Open book examination versus traditional closed book examination: A randomised control trial: Saurav Sarker
• A novel ‘Blended Pedagogy’ for integrating bioinformatics into the undergraduate medical curriculum: a pilot study on feasibility and student engagement: Ragini Singh
• C-SAFE: Critical Skills and Analysis in Fetal Extraction/Delivery- High fidelity Simulation for Impacted: Anum Aziz

Primary care team of the year

For primary care teams improving community health outcomes.

Finalist:

• Kochi Intervention For Tobacco-smoke free homes (KIFT): Aswathy S
• Integrating Newborn and Infant Eye Screening into Universal Health Coverage in Bhutan: Indra P Sharma
• Restructuring the Cataract Surgical Pathway: A Integrated Model between Rural Vision Centres and Base Hospitals: Usha Tejaswini S
• The Metabolic Village: A Scalable Primary Care Model for Community-Level Reversal of Cardiometabolic Disease: Muhammad Jassim

Secondary / integrative care

For hospital-based teams demonstrating clinical excellence, patient safety
and multidisciplinary collaboration, with measurable improvements in patient
outcomes through innovative, scalable and sustainable models of specialised care.

Finalist:

• Stopping Unnecessary Thyroxine: A Practical Clinical Pathway to Detect Macro-TSH and Prevent Misdiagnosis: Mukundkumar Patel
• Study on Effectiveness of Focused Nutritional Advice on Lowering Serum Lipid Levels in Patients with Coronary Artery Disease.: Anshuman Darbari
• Dose-Escalated Image-Guided IMRT versus Conventional 3D-CRT for Palliative Radiotherapy in Bone Metastases — A Prospective Randomised Controlled Trial: Amitabh Ray
• Optimising Statin Therapy After Acute Coronary Syndrome in South Asians: A Randomised Controlled Trial Comparing Atorvastatin 40 mg and 80 mg for Efficacy, Safety, and Cost-Effectiveness: Kavindya Fernando

1. Screening
All entries are checked for eligibility and completeness.

2. Judges review
A BMJ editor and BMJ South Asia editorial board member independently review eligible entries.

3. Final presentations
Shortlisted finalists submit a one-page summary and deliver a ten-minute presentation to the judging panel.

4. Awards ceremony
Winners are announced at the gala event on Saturday, 5 September 2026, in New Delhi, where they will receive a trophy or certificate and editorial recognition across BMJ channels.

Key dates