Campaign to raise awareness about organ donation earns recognition for Wits team
Wits Communications won a bronze award at the 22nd annual Public Relations and Communication Management (Prism) Awards held in Sandton on Sunday, April 14.
The Wits team of eight walked away with the award under the healthcare category for the Wits University Donald Gordon Medical Centre HIV Liver Transplant campaign. Over 260 public relations and communications companies were vying for glory in 18 categories at the awards.
“The campaign was a team effort and the judges commended us for handling this topic very well because of its sensitivity,” the head of the campaign, Deborah Minors, told Wits Vuvuzela.
“The South African Department of Health changed the policy and as a result, HIV positive people can donate organs. The policy was revised in October, 2019 and it raised the profile of organ donation awareness as the campaign was covered internationally by BBC and CNN,” she said.
Flow Communications won gold in the category for the South African National Blood Service campaign.
Prism Awards co-convenor Palesa Madumo told Wits Vuvuzela that, “Each company submits an entry to us and we judge them on the research they have done, if they have made a difference or not, what their objectives were and if they have achieved them.”
Louise Struwig, a spokesperson for the Prism Awards, added that, “There are five or six judges for every category and the companies need to score over 80% for a gold award, over 70% for silver, and 60% for bronze.”
“This is the most prestigious awards in the public relations sector in South Africa, it increases the reputation of the winners and they get more points when they are applying for tenders in the sector,” Struwig told Wits Vuvuzela.
Madumo agreed, saying, winners are well recognised in the industry and their work is showcased at a high level and internationally because they hold a Prism Award, so they get more opportunities.
FEATURED IMAGE: Prism Awards winners collect their certificates after the ceremony. Photo: Zoom Photography
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