Alan Turing Award goes to SocialDiabetes for Social Responsibility in Healthcare
Healthcare honour, the Alan Turing Award for Social Responsibility, has been won by Victor Bautista, founder of the SocialDiabetes app that was created for people with diabetes.
It was presented at the 19th annual 'Night for Telecommunications an IT' in recognition of Bautista's contribution to diabetes care for patients and by healthcare professionals.
The easy to use iPhone and android App was created when Bautista discovered he had diabetes and wanted an easy management solution that used modern technology.
The SocialDiabetes app, which also won the 2012 UNESCO World Summit Award for mobile healthcare, helps people with diabetes to self-manage their disease and steady their glycaemic levels, so they do not accidentally stray outside safe blood sugar levels.
A patient can invite their healthcare professional to check their stats at any time and work together to use the app to help prevent associated complications from poor diabetes management, such as such as kidney failure, nerve damage, stroke, blindness and amputation. This maintenance of quality of life and preventing complications can slash millions from governments' health care spending.
Bautista commented on his app: 'I saw there was a need for a modern day solution that went further than just 'another standard app', and now the Alan Turing Award has acknowledged the importance of the creation of this app and the system behind it that impacts and connects patients and healthcare professionals together. It is my hope that it will continue to help to give people their lives back and free up heath care budgets to be used on other diseases as diabetes costs can now be reduced.'
He added: 'I am thrilled to receive this award. Not just because it is a great honour, but because this will help raise the profile of diabetes and the consequences that can be avoided with controlled technology management of the disease.'
The Night for Telecommunications and IT was organised by the Catalan Association of Telecommunications Engineers and the College of Engineering in Catalonia. The Alan Turing Award is one of two special awards presented on the night, with the second being the Salva i Campillo Award.
