Dr. Imelda de Groot Award 2024: Stimulate innovation in care for Duchenne muscular dystrophy

The annual ‘Dr. Imelda de Groot’ award is now accepting applications. This award aims to stimulate innovative projects that improve care for people with Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD). The award is an initiative of the Duchenne Parent Project Netherlands foundation and focuses on groundbreaking and creative ideas that contribute to better care. The deadline for submission is October 31.

Projects eligible for the award may include the following initiatives:

• Implementation of new scientific findings in daily care
• Exploring the effect of new healthcare treatments (pilot study)
• New sports initiatives
• New leisure initiatives
• Psychosocial care
• Healthcare initiatives to improve social participation
• Exploration of new topics addressed in clinical care

The award includes financial support of €10,000 to start up or further implement a project. This amount is awarded to the winner, who is chosen by a jury chaired by Dr. Imelda de Groot herself.

Every healthcare professional involved in the care of people with DMD is eligible for this award.

The application must be submitted as a video of a maximum of 3 minutes, describing the project and explaining its unique character. The video can be in your own language, but with subtitles in English.

Nominations can be submitted before October 31, 2024 to info@duchenne.nl with the following information.

• Name and contact details of the nominee
• Employer of the nominee: institution/company or other

The winner will be announced on December 1, 2024.

About Dr. Imelda de Groot

Dr. Imelda de Groot retired in April 2021 as a pediatric rehabilitation specialist at the Radboud University Medical Center. During her career, she set up several innovative and relevant research projects focused on Duchenne and Becker muscular dystrophy, such as the ‘No use is disuse’ project that focused on movement and physical activities. The aim of this award is to inspire researchers and clinicians to continue their work in this field.