The 27th annual National Biotechnology and Medicine Care Quality Award ceremony, along with the Symbol of National Quality (SNQ) certification, was held on January 16 at the banquet hall of the Grand Mayfull Hotel Taipei. Known as the highest honor in Taiwan's biotechnology and medical industries, the award encourages continuous quality enhancement in the sector and bolsters Taiwan's international reputation. This year, 31 teams were recognized, with 2 gold, 10 silver, and 19 bronze awards, while 358 teams earned the SNQ certification. The ceremony featured notable presenters, including Minister of Economic Affairs Jyh-Huei Kuo and Deputy Minister of Health and Welfare Jih-Haw Chou.

Top Winners in Healthcare Institutions
In the medical institutions category, the biggest winner was National Taiwan University Hospital (NTUH) and its Jinshan Branch, together earning 3 silver and 4 bronze awards. Close behind was the Taipei Veterans General Hospital (Taipei VGH) system, which secured 2 silver and 2 bronze awards.

During his speech, Wei-Chao Chen, the chief convener, emphasized that the gold, silver, and bronze awards are benchmarks of global, Asia-Pacific, and Taiwan leadership, identifying role models in Taiwan’s medical and biotech sectors. He highlighted Taiwan's continued achievement of international milestones and the establishment of global clinical guidelines.

Chen cited two examples of international-level accomplishments among this year’s winners. The first, the Tri-Service General Hospital cardiology team, won a silver award in the hospital specialty care category for developing an AI-driven electrocardiogram analysis system for clinical applications, reducing overall hospital mortality rates by 17%. Their system was even incorporated into European medical education guidelines. The second, Taipei VGH's pancreatic cancer treatment team, achieved breakthroughs in complex pancreaticoduodenectomy using Da Vinci robotic arms and was invited to author a surgical chapter in the international textbook Pancreas Cancer.

Gold Awards Highlight Precision Medicine and Innovative Care
This year’s two gold awards went to the Smart Care category in nursing services and the prescription drug category in pharmaceuticals. The former was awarded to Hualien Tzu Chi Medical Center for its "Intelligent Diabetes Care Program," which integrates AI-assisted care via the "Diabetes Health APP," ensuring comprehensive support for patients from admission to discharge. Recognizing the unique cultural needs of Indigenous patients in Hualien, the center also developed a Taroko language education system to overcome language barriers and provide accurate healthcare information.

In the prescription drug category, Novartis Taiwan earned the gold award for its intravenous suspension injection "Zolgensma," a groundbreaking one-time gene therapy for spinal muscular atrophy (SMA). Unlike lifelong drug regimens, this treatment repairs defective genes directly, offering new hope for infants with SMA. Its innovative manufacturing techniques and cold-chain logistics ensure treatment quality, revolutionizing care for affected children.

Four Key Trends Among Medical Institution Winners

1. AI Integration for Enhanced Safety and Care Quality
   The specialty care category continued to showcase Taiwan’s innovation. This year’s silver award went to the Tri-Service General Hospital’s "AI ECG Guardian" project, which combines AI interpretation with medical systems to establish an early warning system for cardiovascular death risks. It accurately detects 29 cardiovascular diseases and 24 arrhythmias with a precision rate of 0.828 to 0.988. The related research was published in Nature Medicinein 2024, underscoring Taiwan’s world-class medical research capabilities.

Taipei VGH also won silver for its "AI Liver Cancer Recurrence Risk Prediction Project," developed in collaboration with National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University. This project employs AI algorithms to generate highly accurate predictions.

Bronze went to NTUH for its "Generative Disease Coding Assistance System," which uses a large language model trained on-site to improve the classification and coding of tens of thousands of diseases.

1. Precision Medicine in Pancreatic Cancer Treatment
   Pancreatic cancer, often called the "silent killer," is notoriously difficult to diagnose and treat due to its high recurrence and mortality rates. Taipei VGH’s Pancreatic Cancer Treatment and Research Center won silver for its comprehensive program combining multidisciplinary collaboration and advanced technologies such as Da Vinci robotic surgery. This approach raised the 5-year survival rate for pancreatic cancer patients from 5-10% to 36.9%.

NTUH’s bronze-winning project utilized innovative techniques like duct-to-mucosa pancreaticojejunostomy and embolization to reduce complications, lowering the bleeding rate to 0.9% and 90-day mortality to 0.8%. They also developed the groundbreaking "Beyond Splenic Artery Pancreaticoduodenectomy" to improve post-surgery blood glucose control.

1. Elderly Care and Community Integration
   With Taiwan's aging population, elderly care remains a key focus. Keelung Chang Gung Memorial Hospital’s "Community Cognitive and Mental Health Care Circle" won bronze in the community service category for integrating medical, social welfare, and long-term care resources to address dementia and mental health issues in older adults.

NTUH Jinshan Branch earned silver in the home care category with its "Person-Centered Continuous Home Care Model," which provides end-of-life care to patients and families under its "Aging in Place" philosophy.

1. Sustainability and Emerging Trends
   Recognizing new industry needs, this year’s awards introduced three new categories: Aging Health and Long-Term Care Products, Animal Health Products and Services, and Sustainable Development for Healthcare Institutions.

• Sanofi won bronze in the Aging Health category for its user-friendly insulin injector design.
• Intervet Taiwan claimed bronze in the Animal Health category for an oral broad-spectrum parasite medication for dogs.
• The Ministry of Health and Welfare’s Shuang Ho Hospital took bronze in Sustainability for its green healthcare initiatives.

The National Biotechnology and Medicine Care Quality Award continues to advance the goals of "upgrading biotechnology and pharmaceuticals" and "improving national health," while evolving with the times to address emerging challenges in healthcare and biotechnology.

Resource: 《國家生技醫療品質獎》31組團隊獲金銀銅獎，四大趨勢 展現亞洲生醫典範