Click on image to enlarge (or visit the web site).Here’s the press release:
Centocor, Inc. announced today the launch of MEDVERSATION(TM) (http://www.medversation.com), an extensive web-based resource designed to facilitate more-informed conversations between U.S. physicians and their patients about the efficacy and safety of REMICADE(R) (infliximab).
This interactive web application, in development for the past three
years and the first in its therapeutic class, provides physicians general
information about the progression of certain inflammatory diseases. In
addition, physicians can access detailed summaries of REMICADE clinical
data and interactive tools to manage and customize information for
discussions with patients.
“We recognize that health care conversations have become increasingly
complex over the past few years, with physicians being faced with an
escalating volume of information about drug benefits and risks from
numerous sources,” said Thomas Schaible, Vice President, Medical Affairs,
Centocor, Inc. “We hope MEDVERSATION will play a role in helping physicians
access information on disease states and clinical data about REMICADE, to
enable them to more readily participate in dialogue with an increasingly
more informed and empowered patient population. We want all patients to
receive treatment that it is right for them, regardless of whether or not
the treatment may be ours.”
Centocor created MEDVERSATION with the belief that informed
conversations between health care professionals and patients diagnosed with
serious inflammatory diseases are essential to quality care. To that end,
Centocor has attempted to construct a useful resource for physicians to
consider the multiple dimensions of individual medical decisions that
involve our therapies now and in the future.
Content within MEDVERSATION is organized into four main sections,
paralleling the core dimensions of a medical conversation:
— Natural History of Disease: Provides a wide array of research on and
data for rheumatoid arthritis, Crohn’s disease, ulcerative colitis
and psoriasis.
— Benefits of Treatments: Provides extensive clinical data, including data
from Phase IV trials, about the benefits of REMICADE.
— Risks of Treatments: Provides extensive clinical data and post-marketing
experience regarding the potential risks of REMICADE.
— Benefit:Risk Analysis: Helps physicians interpret and better understand
benefit and risk information.
In addition to these four content areas, MEDVERSATION offers:
— Content update email alerts.
— Customizable handouts about disease progression and the benefits and
risks of treatment.
— Consumer-friendly content.
— A personal library where physicians can bookmark and organize articles
and topics of interest from across the website.
MEDVERSATION will be frequently updated to provide new data and
information as it becomes available. Currently, MEDVERSATION includes
information regarding REMICADE and its approved uses in the treatment of
Crohn’s disease, rheumatoid arthritis, ulcerative colitis and psoriasis;
information for additional approved uses in the treatment of ankylosing
spondylitis, psoriatic arthritis and pediatric Crohn’s disease will be
added over time. In addition, pending the approval of investigational
therapies from Centocor, new content will be added to MEDVERSATION.
I haven’t explored the site yet and I would be interested in your opinion if you have one.
