BEAR Saves Lives Bhutan Project Receives Medical Humanitarian Award from Boston Biopharma

Alpharetta, GA, October 10, 2017 --(PR.com)-- The Bhutan Emergency Aeromedical Retrieval team (BEAR) will be awarded the Medical Humanitarian Award. Established and presented by Boston Biopharma, a USA-based pharmaceutical company that specializes in generic medications, the award aims to identify and recognize exceptional new healthcare programs that impact the lives of patients in underserved areas around the globe. The award will be presented to Dr. Charles Haviland Mize, MD, and the Bhutan Emergency Aeromedical Retrieval team (BEAR) for their volunteer efforts in helping save lives in Bhutan, on October 2nd, 2017. In addition to the award, and in response to the Bhutan Foundation’s campaign for funding, BEAR will be receiving a donation from Boston Biopharma to help further expand the program with much needed medical equipment.

Mize worked with the Bhutan Government and Ministry of Health, Royal Bhutan Helicopter Services and Jigme Dorgi Wangchuck National Referral Hospital (JDWRH) to develop the Bhutan Aeromedical Retrieval Team (BEAR.) The aim of BEAR is to provide cutting-edge resuscitation and critical obstetric care to patients in remote parts of Bhutan including the Himalayas. The team is trained to respond to emergency evacuations in extreme altitudes using a high-performance helicopter equipped with an intensive care unit to transport patients safely to hospitals.

The idea of BEAR was born in 2016 when the life of a patient with a treatable injury could not be saved because he arrived too late to the hospital. Since its inception in May 2017, the program has been an incredible success evacuating close to 200 patients and preventing 50 unnecessary deaths. The BEAR responds to all life-threatening emergencies and provides elite trauma and medical resuscitation to patients in district hospitals or on site as required.

The BEAR team is led by Dr. Mize and includes emergency nurses Lhab Dorji and Kiran Diyali. BEAR could not be possible without the support and collaboration of the Bhutan Foundation, the Bhutan government and the Jigme Dorgi Wangchuck National Referral Hospital (JDRNRH).

Additionally, Mize will be returning to Bhutan in October 2017 to further develop a high-altitude mountain rescue program for the Royal Kingdom. He will continue in his positions as Head of Bhutan Emergency Aeromedical Retrieval and Head of Resuscitation at JDWNRH. The BEAR team will also be ensuring the sustainability of the life-saving program by help training Bhutanese physicians.

“Dr. Mize’s efforts represent the selfless dedication to serve patients and save lives,” said Ahmad Hashem, MD, Ph.D., Chief Executive Officer at Boston Biopharma. “We are honored to support his work and The Bhutan Foundation to provide needed medical equipment. We will also work with The Bhutan Cancer Society to provide anti-cancer medications to the country.”

Mize is an emergency medicine physician who completed his Emergency Medicine Residency at George Washington University in Washington D.C., his medical degree at Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons, and his undergraduate degree from Yale University. For the past year, he has volunteered at The Bhutan Foundation to help improve emergency medical services in Bhutan.

Boston Biopharma is a US company focused on the development of generic pharmaceuticals, and is dedicated to furthering excellence in healthcare. The company began administering this award with the goal of raising the awareness of healthcare organizations and individuals who go beyond the ordinary in providing care to populations in underserved areas. To date, the company has launched 12 sophisticated oncology products and has operations in America, Europe (Malta), Turkey, Iraq, Algeria, and Ukraine.