Ron Ignatius Memorial Awards for Excellence in Photomedicine

Ron Ignatius passed away in January 2011. We mourn the loss of such a brilliant mind. Ron invented the plant growth LED lighting systems for NASA, settting the stage for NASA LEDs in medical applications and earning the prestigious NASA Space Technology Hall of Fame Award in 2000. Mr. Ignatius spent his entire life focused on light. He used over half of all NASA SBIR dollars along with his own personal funds to promote research, having over 18 years devoted to the science of light. Throughout his life, Ron was very passionate about science and technology. He didn't just want to know what something was, he needed to know how it worked and how it could be used to better life. It was with this drive that he founded Quantum Devices, Inc. in 1989, where he used his knowledge and dedication towards the principle of Improving the Quality of Life through the Power in Light. NAALT is pleased to have the Ron Ignatius Memorial Award Fund to celebrate research and education in light technology started off with a donation by WARP PhotoMedicine, LLC.

Donations in support of this award are appreciated.

Other Awards

To foster new connections and attract the investigators and promoting excellence in both aspects of laser therapy namely the basic science lab and the clinical realms, a new program to award the most meritorious abstracts has been proposed by NAALT. A Young Investigator (YI) competition is proposed where the highest scoring abstracts submitted to each year's conference will be invited to present their work in a special podium session which will be evaluated by an expert panel of judges for technical and presentation excellence. Similarly a third award for mid-level or senior investigator to recognize excellence in laser sciences (Basic or clinical) is proposed which will be decided by the board and Science and Education Committee (SEC).

Fund Raising

Fund raising is anticipated from two sources:

1.      Commercial: within the regular sponsors will be asked to allocate their funds towards this activity

2.      Individual: a letter stating the new award and request for personal donations will be sent to the NAALT membership.

Further, to maintain sustainability for future conferences, a proposal to create a account that will accrue interest and over time be self-sufficient to enable the awards to be given annually and the monetary amount for each award will be increased.

All sponsors will be acknowledged in the program brochure along with the 6 best abstracts selected for the YI session. A brief biographical sketch and professional accomplishments of the mid/senior level scientist will also be published in the brochure. All info will also be posted on our webpage.

Naming of the Awards

The board had proposed naming the awards after the founding member and/or individuals who have made seminal contributions to laser sciences and each individual has recently accepted this honor.

Award Categories

1.      Chukuka Enwemeka Excellence in Photomedicine (Mid/Senior investigator)(2011: $400)

2.      Tiina Karu Basic Photomedicine(Young Investigator) (2011: $300)

3.      Mary Dyson Clinical Photomedicine(Young Investigator) (2011: $300)

 

 

Details of the individual award

Chukuka Enwemeka Excellence in Photomedicine award

A call for nominations will go out to the SEC, NAALT board and general membership soliciting nominations in a specific format (below). Nominations have to be made by a NAALT member in good standing but the nominee does not have to be a NAALT member. Self nominations will not be accepted.

Eligibility

1.      Mid-senior level scientist (Age > 45years as of Sep of that year)

2.      Significant contributions to laser biology as a clinician or researcher as evidenced by (but not limited to) publication, talk invitations, journal editorial board membership, leadership positions in laser organizations, patents, honors, etc.

3.      Industry affiliates will be eligible and will be held to same meritorious standards.

4.      Does not have to be a NAALT member

5.      The awadree must be present in person to accept this award

Application

1.      Cover letter by NAALT member addressed to Chair, SEC, explaining merit of applicant

2.      Biographical sketch (NIH format: http://grants.nih.gov/grants/funding/phs398/phs398.html)

3.      Three letters of support from colleagues/peers

The application package should be emailed to SE chair at abstracts@naalt.org

Selection Procedure

Applicants will be screened by current SEC chair and suitable candidates will be forwarded for electronic voting by the Board and SEC members. A majority decision will be used to select the honoree. Any ties will be resolved by majority vote from the current NAALT President, Vice-President and SEC Chair. All the nomination and assessment including a final report from the SEC chair explaining in detail how the candidate was chosen must be on record and submitted to the NAALT secretary within a month after the Annual conference for future references. The award must be formally announced during the dinner gala and will be preceded by a brief description of Dr. Enwemeka's seminal contributions to laser sciences and NAALT society. The awardee must be intimated before the conference to ensure they can attend the conference in person and accept the award.

 

Tiina Karu Basic Photomedicine Award

A call for abstracts for the annual meeting will go out to general membership and advertised widely. This award is meant for a young investigator based on both scientific merit as well as ability to communicate their science to the audience effectively.

Eligibility

1.      Young investigator (Age < 45years as of Sep of that year)

2.      Must be a NAALT member

3.      Must be the first (primary) author on the submitted abstract in basic photomedicine*

4.      Must attend annual conference and present work in person

5.      Can be affiliated from academic or industry

6.      Work must be original, novel or innovative and recent (unpublished in journals)

Basic Photomedicine*: as judged by SEC to include work on basic light physics, chemistry or biology, in vitro biological or biochemical analyses, all small and large animal work for research purposes (excluding large or companion animal and human studies), instrument manufacturing or innovation,

Selection Procedure

One award will be given each year. Abstracts are reviewed by atleast three independent reviewers and scored for originality, content and novelty-innovation. The best three eligible abstracts will be invited to present their work in a special session at the Annual meeting which will be judged by 6 to 10 members compromising of the SEC and NAALT board but must include atleast 2 members from the general membership. The nominee will be judged on a standardized scoring sheet provided by SEC chair on scientific merit, presentation skills and addressing audience and/or judges questions. A majority decision will be used to select the awardee. Any ties will be resolved by majority vote from the NAALT President, Vice-President and SEC Chair. All the assessment forms including a final report from the SEC chair outlining how the awardee was chosen must be on record and submitted to the NAALT secretary within a month after the annual conference for future references. The award must be announced during the dinner gala and will be preceded by a brief description of Dr. Karus' seminal contributions to our understanding of laser basic sciences.

 

 

 

 

Mary Dyson Clinical Photomedicine Award

A call for abstracts for the annual meeting will go out to general membership and advertised widely. This award is meant for a young investigator based on both scientific merit as well as ability to communicate their science to the audience effectively.

Eligibility

1.      Young investigator (Age < 45years as of Sep of that year)

2.      Must be a NAALT member

3.      Must be the first (primary) author on the submitted abstract in Clinical Photomedicine*

4.      Must attend annual conference and present work in person

5.      Can be affiliated from academic or industry

6.      Work must be original, novel and recent (unpublished in journals)

Clinical Photomedicine*: as judged by SEC to include studies directly involving large or companion animal and human subjects

Selection Procedure

One award will be given each year. Abstracts are reviewed by atleast three independent reviewers and scored for originality, content and novelty-innovation. The best three eligible abstracts will be invited to present their work in a special session at the Annual meeting which will be judged by 6 to 10 members compromising of the SEC and NAALT board but must include atleast 2 members from the general membership. The nominee will be judged on a standardized scoring sheet provided by SEC chair on scientific merit, presentation skills and addressing audience and/or judges questions. A majority decision will be used to select the awardee. Any ties will be resolved by majority vote from the NAALT President, Vice-President and SEC Chair. All the assessment forms including a final report from the SEC chair outlining how the awardee was chosen must be on record and submitted to the NAALT secretary within a month after the annual conference for future references. The award must be announced during the dinner gala and will be preceded by a brief description of Dr. Dysons' seminal contributions to our understanding of laser clinical sciences.