Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 2006. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.
Sunday Times (Johannesburg) - April 9, 2006
Brett Horner
Coovadia, a scientific director at the Nelson R Mandela School of Medicine, received the award at the 2006 HIV Congress in Mumbai last month.
Coovadia said it was an honour that his research had been recognised by people with whom he shared seats on international advisory boards.
"At every congress they give out two or three awards, and this time they asked me to come to receive an award from them," he said.
"The nicest thing for me was when they asked me to speak. Even though I hadnÆt prepared, I spoke about what I thought was important."
Dignitaries at the event included former Indian cricket captain Mohammad Azharuddin, Bollywood star Shilpa Shetty and the governor of Maharashtra state, Shri SM Krishna, who presented the award to Coovadia.
For Coovadia, who recently spent three and half months in hospital because of a recurring bowel illness that first struck him 20 years ago, the award is especially meaningful, coming from India, where, according to a report in the Lancet medical journal, the HIV pandemic is now under control.
"It just makes me weep that here we have more money than India, Tanzania, Uganda and Cambodia, and yet those guys are just succeeding like you canÆt believe," he said.
Coovadia has received numerous accolades at home and abroad. In 1999, former president Nelson Mandela presented him with the Star of South Africa for his contribution to democracy and health.
A year later, he received the International Association of Physicians in Aids and Care Award and the Heroes in Medicine Award in Toronto, Canada.
He was also elected to the Institute of Medicine of the National Academy of Sciences in the US, a rare honour for foreigners.
He has also published prolifically, and leads a range of research programmes, advisory groups and development trusts.
Coovadia is best known for his groundbreaking studies in the transmission of HIV from mother to child.
060409
ST060403
Copyright © 2006 - The Sunday Times. Reproduction of this article (other than one copy for personal reference) must be cleared through the Sunday Times Permissions Desk.
AEGiS is a 501(c)3, not-for-profit, tax-exempt, educational corporation. AEGiS is made possible through unrestricted grants from Boehringer Ingelheim, Bridgestone/Firestone Charitable Trust, Bristol-Myers Squibb Company, Elton John AIDS Foundation, the National Library of Medicine, Roche and Trimeris, and donations from users like you. Always watch for outdated information. This article first appeared in 2006. This material is designed to support, not replace, the relationship that exists between you and your doctor.
AEGiS presents published material, reprinted with permission and neither endorses nor opposes any material. All information contained on this website, including information relating to health conditions, products, and treatments, is for informational purposes only. It is often presented in summary or aggregate form. It is not meant to be a substitute for the advice provided by your own physician or other medical professionals. Always discuss treatment options with a doctor who specializes in treating HIV.
Copyright ©1980, 2006. AEGiS. All materials appearing on AEGiS are protected by copyright as a collective work or compilation under U.S. copyright and other laws and are the property of AEGiS, or the party credited as the provider of the content. .