IHF Awards 2025: International healthcare institutions invited to showcase innovations across seven categories
The International Hospital Federation (IHF) has launched its 2025 Awards programme, with a call for international healthcare institutions to enter. Submissions are open until 2 May. This year’s awards mark a decade of celebrating excellence in healthcare leadership and innovation. The 2025 Awards recognise outstanding achievements across seven categories, with winners to be announced at the Awards Gala during the 48th IHF World Hospital Congress in Geneva, Switzerland on 12 November 2025
Award categories spotlight diverse healthcare achievements
The 2025 IHF Awards programme encompasses seven distinctive categories, each designed to highlight specific aspects of healthcare excellence:
Dr Kwang Tae Kim Grand Hospital Award
The highest honour within the IHF, reserved exclusively for member hospitals demonstrating excellence across five critical dimensions of healthcare delivery: quality and safety, patient experience, cost efficiency, workforce wellbeing, and health equity and access. Nominees must demonstrate how their institutional vision has fostered a culture of excellence, supported by measurable evidence of success.
Dr Prathap C Reddy Excellence Award for Clinical Quality and Patient Safety
Open to IHF members, their hospitals, and health service providers who have implemented projects demonstrating measurable improvements in clinical care. Eligible initiatives include developing enhanced care models with quality and safety objectives, establishing comprehensive patient safety cultures, improving workforce education on patient engagement, addressing care inequalities for at-risk populations, and reducing preventable clinical errors.
American Hospital Association Excellence Award for Healthcare Workers’ Wellbeing
Recognises innovative programmes supporting healthcare staff through measurable achievements in recruitment, retention, engagement, and workplace environment optimisation. Successful nominees will demonstrate creative approaches to staff retention, engagement strategies promoting job satisfaction, interventions combating burnout, and initiatives supporting both physical and mental wellbeing of healthcare professionals.
Mastercard Award for Hospital Operational Excellence
Honours healthcare institutions achieving measurable improvements in operational efficiency through transformative technologies, value-based care implementation, workforce satisfaction strategies, streamlined care pathways, and data-driven optimisation. Submissions require evidence of sustained improvements in productivity, financial sustainability, access, patient satisfaction, or staff retention.
Recognising leadership and sustainability commitments
American College of Healthcare Executives Excellence Award for Leadership and Management
Celebrates excellence in healthcare leadership through programmes that strengthen governance mechanisms, foster staff engagement, facilitate breakthrough care innovations, or demonstrate improvements in patient-reported outcomes. Successful nominations will clearly articulate the relationship between leadership practices and measurable institutional achievements.
Ashikaga-Nikken Excellence Award for Low-Carbon Healthcare
Acknowledges hospitals making significant progress in sustainable healthcare delivery over the past 12-18 months. Eligible initiatives include reducing environmental footprints, building climate change resilience, transforming operations to low-carbon models, and cultivating organisational sustainability cultures.
Seddiqi Holding Excellence Award for Social and Environmental Responsibility
Recognises organisation-wide programmes demonstrating measurable impact across three sustainability domains: leadership and governance structures promoting accountability; health equity initiatives addressing community vulnerabilities; and environmental impact reduction through operational and clinical practice transformation.
Submission process and benefits
The submission period for the 2025 IHF Awards runs from 18 February to 2 May 2025. Entries must be submitted through the IHF online platform at https://submissions.ihf-fih.org and require endorsement from the organisation’s CEO, President, or Chairperson.
Winners will receive significant benefits, including international visibility across the IHF network, media exposure through video presentations and podcast interviews, recognition at the Awards Gala, enhanced institutional reputation, feature in the IHF Awards Digital Publication, and speaking opportunities at the World Hospital Congress.
Eligibility requirements ensure focused competition
Only current IHF member hospitals and healthcare service providers are eligible to participate, with consultancy companies and vendors explicitly excluded. Excellence Award nominations must feature recent projects and can only be submitted in a single category. All submissions, including supporting documentation, must be in English.
Assessment will be conducted by the IHF Awards Committee, comprising experienced global healthcare leaders who will evaluate entries based on innovation, evidence of impact, adaptability potential, scientific rigour, and clarity of presentation.
Healthcare organisations interested in submitting entries are encouraged to explore past winners’ stories available on the IHF website and direct enquiries to awards@ihf-fih.org. The 48th World Hospital Congress will take place from 10-13 November 2025 at the International Conference Centre Geneva, hosted by the IHF and University Hospital of Geneva.
