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Effectiveness of InfoMedics Patient Feedback Programs Demonstrated at Two Health Care Industry Events

Posted on: Thursday, 7 June 2007, 18:00 CDT

InfoMedics, Inc., the patient feedback company, today announced its recent presentation of posters detailing studies that demonstrate the benefits of its patient feedback services at two health care industry events: AcademyHealth's Annual Research Meeting, held June 3-5, 2007, in Orlando, FL and the International Society for Pharmacoeconomics and Outcomes Research (ISPOR) 12th Annual International Meeting, May 19-23, 2007, in Arlington, VA. The studies were presented by Paul LeVine, vice president, analytic services and Donna Kerney, PhD, director of analytics, both of InfoMedics.

"The presentations serve to quantify the effectiveness of patient feedback programs as supplements to office visits in the communication between physicians and patients," said LeVine. "The health care industry has long acknowledged the ever-increasing time constraints of physicians. Sponsored by pharmaceutical companies, patient feedback surveys offer one solution to that challenge. The programs augment and improve physician-patient communications by allowing patients to give their physicians information about their treatment experience at their convenience, outside the office setting."

The ISPOR poster, entitled "New Audience for Patient-Reported Outcomes (PRO) Data: Patients," summarized input from patients and providers about the value of health outcomes data for patients in the area of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) with or without psoriasis. Interviewees were asked to detail the value of their participation in patient feedback programs for assessing and reporting their experiences with a given prescription medication. Patients cited strong interest in giving the information to their physicians, while many of the providers cited the usefulness of the feedback in starting discussions with their patients. Both patients and providers felt that the feedback program helped patients feel more connected to their physicians and increased patients' involvement in their care. Based on this research, it became apparent that a new audience for health outcomes data -- delivered in simple, straightforward terms -- is patients themselves.

The poster presented at the AcademyHealth meeting, entitled "Feasibility of a Feedback Initiative for Facilitating Patient Engagement and Physician-Patient Communications," examined how feedback initiatives could be used to facilitate patient engagement in their care and foster positive, constructive dialogue between patients and physicians. The poster presented examples of data from separate programs for three disease areas (gastrointestinal, neurological and ocular conditions). Based on the data, the authors concluded that feedback from patients to physicians outside the office setting, in the form of a brief summary report, can provide valuable input to the physician about patients' perceptions of treatment that otherwise may have been missed. The data can open points for discussion between physicians and patients, allowing the identification of areas of progress and those in need of improvement. A straightforward survey tool and feedback system is a feasible and well-received means for facilitating constructive dialogue between patients and physicians.

About InfoMedics, Inc.

InfoMedics, Inc. is the only pharmaceutical services provider that delivers clear, actionable patient feedback to physicians; this feedback is designed to improve patient-physician communications while providing brand insight to pharmaceutical manufacturers. Patient feedback assists physicians at the point-of-care to optimize treatment outcomes and improve medication compliance. InfoMedics' programs facilitate the communication channel between physicians and patients around the prescribed pharmaceutical brand, enhancing product awareness and accelerating market share growth.

Founded in 1995, InfoMedics' customer base includes 14 of the world's top 15 pharmaceutical companies. The company has delivered over 150 programs across multiple therapeutic areas with industry leading ROI.

For more information, visit www.infomedics.com.

Source: Business Wire

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