Thursday 20th October
PRIME MINISTER HONOURS ILLAWARA DIVISION WITH NATIONAL COMMUNITY BUSINESS PARTNERSHIP AWARD
The Illawarra Division of General Practice’s community partnership with PRIME TV and WAVE FM received the highest accolade last night, when the partnership was named the national winner of the Small Business Category at the Prime Minister’s Awards for Excellence in Community Business Partnerships.
Having recently been announced as the NSW category winner, the prestigious National Award was presented to Illawarra Division of General Practice (IDGP) by Prime Minister John Howard, together with media partners PRIME and WAVE FM, for their creative approach to health care and the well being of Illawarra residents.
The Small Business Award acknowledges the successful outcomes of the long-term community partnership between the Illawarra Division of General Practice, Prime TV and WAVE FM. Over the past four years, 28 commercials have been produced by PRIME and WAVE FM to highlight community health issues and lifestyle solutions that have been identified as important by local GPs and other community members.
Accepting the Award on behalf of IDGP, Dr Rene Dostal, Chairman, said: “IDGP is thrilled that through our media partners, the expertise of our GPs, the creative input of many patients, and the insights of community representatives have been recognised by the Prime Minister”. “We are particularly excited that this result highlights the Illawarra community’s ability to pull together and form strong, productive and sustainable partnerships”
Dr Andrew Dalley, Chief Executive Officer of the Illawarra Division said, “The partnership with Prime and WAVE has provided a significant outlet to the community. It has allowed us to provide GPs, who normally work one on one, with a much broader relationship with the community. This Community Partnership Award has given us the impetus to hang in there and understand that recognition comes from sustained efforts in this field”.
Fifteen community business partnerships made it through to the National Finals, with the five category winners announced last night at a special Gala Dinner held at the Melbourne Museum. First introduced in 1999 and the flagship of the Prime Minister’s Community Business Partnership Program, the Awards honour and reward those businesses and community organisations that come together to generate outcomes for the long term benefit of the community. All partnerships honoured as National Award winners, including the Illawarra Division of General Practice, will receive $10,000 towards their community project.
