Child and Adolescent Health Champion Awards

2024 Nominations now open

Please submit a nomination using the form below. 

Closing date: 30 July 2024

Nomination Guidelines

Any ACAH member/non-member is eligible to be nominated but only ACAH members can nominate and only ACAH voting members can vote for the winners. ACAH Board members are not eligible for the ACAH Champion awards as the final decision on awards will be made by the Board

Nomination process:

• Any ACAH member can nominate up to 3 people for any of the Champion awards (NB: the nominee does not need to be a member)
• Nominations will be made online through the ACAH website using a standard form
• The nominator can choose to remain anonymous to the nominee and does not need to inform or seek the consent of the nominee at this stage
• The ACAH Board will ratify nominations and then contact the nominee before placing the nominations on the ACAH Website for member voting

Please note, only ACAH members are eligible to nominate. Please sign in as a member or start your nomination or explore our membership options here.

Prof David Isaacs

“David is an inspirational mentor to many paediatricians and others working in child health. He started the Clinical Ethics and Refugee service at The Children’s Hospital at Westmead and was the first paediatrician whistleblower for #KidsoffNauru. He went public to highlight the plight of the children in detention in Nauru, was a WorldVision Ambassador and strong advocate for ethical treatment for all children in immigration detention across Australia. This was a major contribution to the eventual release of all children from immigration detention. By publicly challenging the government to arrest and jail him when the Border Force Act was passed, he joined the Doctors 4 Refugee and Australian Medical Association advocacy to revoke that legislation- another win! David has also re-invigorated the national paediatric journal, the Journal of Paediatrics and Child Health, and his contribution over many decades deserves to be recognised by his peers.”

Alanna Maycock 

“Alanna was the first nursing whistleblower highlighting her concerns about the plight of children in the immigration detention centre in Nauru. She risked 2 years in jail with the Border Force legislation but was not deterred. She was courageous enough to speak at public forums and multiple meetings with Aus Human Rights Commission, Amnesty and as a World Vision Ambassador for the Kidsoffnauru campaign. She is an amazingly passionate and energetic person who has always gone above and beyond in relation to fighting for children who need a champion and this contribution has not been appropriately recognised.”

Kelvin Kong

“Kelvin is absolutely amazing. He is the first Aboriginal surgeon in Australia and has led the way for many other specialist medical practitioners from First Nations backgrounds. He is absolutely inspirational for many young Aboriginal kids and every Aboriginal person I have met, including at international conferences, tells me that he has been a valuable mentor and support in their careers. He has a busy clinical practice but was able to support the HEALS project (Hearing Ear health and Language Services) when funding was available and managed half the operations conducted through that programme across NSW 2013-2017. He also performs cochlear implant surgery for refugee kids who would otherwise not have access. He is heavily involved in ear health research, including NHMRC CREs, trials and other studies as a Chief Investigator. He has both state and federal government links and was instrumental in advancing the MRFF for Indigenous health. He is doing amazing, tireless work and does not receive the recognition that he deserves!”