[Washington, DC - April 7, 2022] Health Volunteers Overseas (HVO) is pleased to announce the recipients of the seventeenth annual HVO Golden Apple Award. Every year, as part of its World Health Day observances and in celebration of World Health Worker Week, HVO recognizes the extraordinary contributions of HVO members, volunteers, and supporters. Each individual honored with this award has demonstrated a commitment to HVO’s mission to improve global health through the education, training, and professional development of the health workforce in resource-scarce countries.
The recipients of the 2022 Golden Apple Award are: Anju Adhikary; Bhavani Chalikonda, MBBS; Robert Erdin, MD; Matthew Fisher, DMD; Annette Galassi, RN, MA, OCN; Brian Hollander, DMD; Dashrath Kafle, BDS, MDS; Murray Kesselman, MD, FRCPC; Stephanie Murphy, MPA, CPA; Yangden, BSN; Royann Royer, RDH, MPH, CDA; Rebecca Turkel, PT, DPT; and Richard Wise, MD.
These individuals have contributed to global health and the HVO mission in a number of ways. Their work includes project assessment, development, and monitoring; advocacy and promotion of HVO’s mission; building professional networks that support health workers and facilitate advancements at project sites; cultivation of connections between HVO volunteers and overseas trainees; acquisition and development of educational resources; and teaching, training, and mentoring overseas health workers to expand their knowledge, skills and professional development.
“The resilience and commitment of these honorees is quite extraordinary. The global pandemic meant that all volunteers were called back from the field. When it became obvious that the pandemic was going to last longer than we initially thought, HVO pivoted to virtual learning. These volunteers were at the forefront of this effort – giving of their time and expertise to ensure that the HVO mission of education and training continued,” remarked HVO Executive Director, Nancy Kelly, MHS.
The efforts of HVO Golden Apple Award recipients are an integral part of HVO’s mission to expand access to care by empowering health workers. By highlighting the achievements and contributions of the Golden Apple Award recipients, HVO seeks to demonstrate how education and opportunity for health workers will lead to more people around the world being able to access safe, skilled, and compassionate health care when they need it most.
The HVO Board of Directors established the HVO Golden Apple Award in 2006 to recognize and thank the individuals and health educators who make exceptional contributions to HVO and our mission to improve global health. Each year, a handful of individuals - nominated by HVO members, volunteers or leadership, or by our overseas partners - receive the award in recognition of the substantial impact they have had as teachers, advisers, mentors, and leaders.
Since 1950, the World Health Organization (WHO) and the international community have celebrated World Health Day on April 7. The day always focuses on a relevant global health issue and this year’s theme is “Our Planet, Our Health.” For more information on World Health Day, visit the WHO website.
World Health Worker Week, celebrated for the tenth consecutive year, runs from April 4-8. The week serves as an opportunity to mobilize communities, partners, and policy makers in support of health workers around the world. It is a time to celebrate the amazing work that they do and to raise awareness of the challenges they face every day. Learn more about World Health Worker Week.