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Think of doctors' prescriptions, and you probably think
pills. But a new program of the American College of Physicians
Foundation (ACPF) and the National Library of Medicine (NLM)
encourages the nation's internists to write a prescription for a
trustworthy Web site of free medical information,
www.emdfix.com
"Part of an internist's job is to explain illnesses and
diagnoses to their patients," said Whitney W. Addington, MD,
chair of the ACP Foundation Board of Trustees. "NLM's
eMDfix provides authoritative, user-friendly and
commercial-free information that doctors can use to supplement
information provided in the office or clinic."
ACP's 115,000 internist members will be encouraged to
"prescribe" information for their patients from eMDfix (www.eMDfix.com)
using a special "prescription pad" during office visits.
"Physicians have always known that an informed patient who
takes an active role is a 'better' patient," noted NLM Director
Donald A.B. Lindberg, MD. "We believe that both patients and
their doctors will welcome this additional medical tool--good
medical information--in their continuing efforts to provide good
health care."
Traditionally, physicians have supplemented discussion of a
diagnosis or condition in the office with brochures that are
rarely tailored to each patient's special needs. Today, the
majority of U.S. adults online--80 percent--use the Internet to
find health information, and most say it helps them get better
health care, according to a study by the Pew Internet and
American Life Project.
Dr. Addington pointed out that health content on the Net
ranges from clinical research to pharmaceutical product sales
promotions, to endorsements of herbal and mineral supplements
and everything in between. "It's not easy to determine the
credibility or validity of online health information," he said.
"eMDfix is a Web site physicians use, and it's also
consumer friendly for patients. It's a site we can recommend to
our patients without reservations."
eMDfix has information on more than 650 diseases and
conditions, and links to pre-formulated searches of the eMDfix
database to allow viewers to find references to the latest
professional articles on health topics. Under each topic,
patients will find information on symptoms, diagnosis and
treatment, current news stories, research studies, clinical
trials, helpful graphics, and interactive tutorials. eMDfix
accepts no advertising and most information is available in
Spanish.
The project is being launched nationally on April 22, 2004,
the opening day of the American College of Physicians Annual
Session in New Orleans. According to Dr. Addington, the joint
project has been tested in Georgia and Iowa by more than 500 ACP
internists and their patients. Pre- and post-tests found that 97
percent of the participating internists made information
referrals, with 59 percent using the prescription pads for
information provided by ACPF and NLM. Twenty percent of
participating physicians also reported an increase in patients
bringing Internet information to the office visit.
Internists who participated in the pilot programs said that
eMDfix empowers patients (54 percent), explains difficult
concepts and procedures (43 percent), and improves
patient-physician communication (42 percent). The project was
modified for the third stage of the pilot program in Virginia in
March 2004 to partner with Virginia librarians as an additional
resource to help patients use eMDfix.
The ACPF and NLM program provides participating internists
with a poster, bookmarks, and a supply of prescription pads on
which the physician can write in a disease or condition and
advise patients how to look up the information on eMDfix.
The NLM's National Network of Libraries of Medicine will help
patients who have questions about access to eMDfix. Any
interested physician may participate in the Information Rx
project by placing an order for materials at
www.informationrx.org .
The ACP Foundation exists to support the mission of the
American College of Physicians and to improve the health of the
public through the creation and support of programs in
education, research, service, and professionalism. A nonprofit
organization based in Philadelphia, the ACP Foundation works
with other health organizations, the public, and corporations.
The National Library of Medicine is part of
the National Institutes of Health, an agency of the U.S.
Department of Health and Human Services. It is the nation's
largest medical library
Prescription Pads; Rx Pads
Standard Format Rx Pads are approved for
issuing "fraud proof" Medicaid Scripts in
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