For the second time in two days Professor Susan Sawyer found herself accepting an award on behalf of the wonderful team who work on the Eating Disorders Program.

Professor Susan Sawyer Director, Centre for Adolescent
Health, and Dr Andrew Court, co-lead of the RCH Eating Disorder program, were delighted to attend the Premier’s Health Awards ceremony last week following the shortlisting of the RCH Eating Disorder program in the category of ‘Outstanding achievement by an individual or team in mental health”. In the photo is Dr Andrew Court, Christine Kilpatrick (CEO RCH), Prof Susan Sawyer, Health Minister Mary Wooldridge and Dr Peter McDougall (Chief of Medicine RCH).

Having just won the RCH Team Award for the same program the night before at the 141^st RCH Annual General Meeting and Awards night, Professor Sawyer said that she’d managed to persuade herself that the team couldn’t possibly get up two night in a row.

“But as I listened to the Minister for Health, the Minister for Mental Health and the Premier of Victoria each speak in turn about what these awards were about – excellence, innovation, patient and family centred care, team work, integrated services – Andrew and I looked at each other and held our breath, knowing that the results we have achieved are as remarkable as they were challenging to acheive.” she said.

“And suddenly, it was our turn – and we won!  It was even more of a buzz than the night before”, she said, referring to same team being awarded the RCH Team Award at the 141^st RCH Annual General Meeting and Awards Night.

The award was one of three awards that the RCH took home on the night.

Last night’s award makes it two in a row for the Centre for Adolescent Health. Last
year, the Chronic Illness Peer Support program was awarded a Premier’s Health
Award for excellence in ‘Tackling chronic disease and improving public health’.