The Deans of the Academy of Judges have thoroughly evaluated the category winners with the highest evaluations and selected the Founders' Award winners from the 2009 competition. These awards are named after the individuals who championed the competition in its early years. We are pleased to announce the competition's most prestigious awards.

The Surgeon General's Award, given for the best educational entry for health professionals, was awarded to the winner in the Oncology category, Zoledronic Acid-Antitumor MOA from Shaw Science Partners. First the viewer is made familiar with the normal process of bone remodeling in an animated flight through the bone matrix. Next the viewer explores the pathology of bone metastases and sees its influence on the bone matrix. The viewer is then introduced to zoledronic acid and learns about its effects on osteoclasts and on growth and proliferation.

The Michael E. DeBakey, MD, Award, named after the renowned cardiovascular surgeon who supported our competition since its inception, is given to the finest educational entry of the year. The 2009 winner is a five part series titled The Alzheimer's Project from Home Box Office. While there is no cure today for this devastating disease this series shows there is genuine reason to be optimistic about the future. The series takes a close look at groundbreaking discoveries made by the country's leading scientists, as well as the effects of this debilitating and fatal disease both on those with Alzheimer's and on their families.

The Helen Hayes Award is named in honor of the late first lady of the stage who was a longtime supporter of the competition. This year we presented the award, which acknowledges the best production for the health consumer audience, to Diabetes: Demystifying the Myths from Discovery Health. Through patient profiles and interviews with leading medical experts this program addresses proper diabetes care and clarifies misconception about the disease.

Robert Wise was one of the competition's early champions. It is fitting that his name is on the award for outstanding cinematography. The Robert E. Wise Award is given this year to The Final Inch, winner in the category of Prevention. This documentary from Home Box Office takes viewers to India's poorest neighborhoods where health workers go door to door to ensure that every child is vaccinated against polio. Their mission is to eradicate polio from the planet.