Pilot project aims to provide easy access to standardized drug codes and promote interoperability among Internet-based healthcare services

First DataBank, a leading provider of integrated drug databases for the healthcare industry, today announced that it will join PharmaSURVEYOR and a growing list of "Health 2.0 companies" as participants in the Health 2.0 Accelerator, a consortium focused on promoting integration of technology and the consumer experience to advance consumer-centric health care.

In addition, First DataBank announced that it has partnered with PharmaSURVEYOR, a founding member of the Health 2.0 Accelerator (H2A), to launch a pilot project for direct online access to the company’s proprietary drug information and standardized drug codes. The Drug Code Lookup Service (DCLS) will provide Web developers with easy online access to First DataBank’s standardized drug codes with the aim to promote interoperability among Internet-based healthcare services and the portability of patient records across healthcare providers.

“We’re excited to work with PharmaSURVEYOR and H2A to make reliable up-to-date drug information available and affordable to this emerging ecosystem of patient-centric healthcare technologies,” said Don Nielsen, MD, president, First DataBank. “It is our intention that this pilot program will facilitate ease of information exchange so that ultimately the healthcare consumer can easily access the information they need to make informed health care decisions or improve the health care they receive.”

Drug codes accessed through the DCLS are provided from First DataBank’s National Drug Data File (NDDF™) Plus, one of the healthcare industry’s most widely used sources of up-to-date drug information utilized at the point of care. PharmaSURVEYOR will provide online access to NDDF Pluscodes through Web services using a pay-per-use pricing model.

"The Drug Code Lookup Service couples the highest standards of drug data curation with the access, ease of use and limitless scalability of Web 2.0," said Erick Von Schweber, executive co-chair of PharmaSURVEYOR, Inc.

The partnership between First DataBank and PharmaSURVEYOR also illustrates a key focus of the Health 2.0 Accelerator consortium: collaboration. H2A works with its participants to encourage collaboration around specific business or technical objectives to benefit consumers in ways that are challenging or inefficient for companies to tackle alone. For established health care companies, such as First DataBank, H2A provides an opportunity to collaborate with Health 2.0 companies and pursue innovative solutions for empowering patients to more actively engage in managing their health.

“We see this partnership as a potential model for how innovative Health 2.0 companies like PharmaSURVEYOR and seasoned health IT leaders like First DataBank can come together as H2A participants to make reliable data and powerful tools available to the community,” said Julie Murchinson, executive director of the Health 2.0 Accelerator.

The DCLS pilot will be highlighted during the Health 2.0 Conference in San Francisco, on October 7, 2009, and will be made available by PharmaSURVEYOR to members of the Health 2.0 Accelerator. The pilot program is the first in a series of offerings to make drug data available through online services. Following the pilot program, general availability of the Drug Code Lookup Service is planned for early 2010.

About Health 2.0 Accelerator
H2A is a nonprofit organization whose goal is to advance consumer-centric health care by driving integration of technology and the consumer experience across a network of new and established technology companies and health care organizations. Through the development of a common understanding of consumer value and promoting trusted use of Health 2.0 technology solutions, Health 2.0 Accelerator aims to remove integration barriers that limit mutually beneficial collaborative business opportunities, while facilitating the integration of Health 2.0 technology solutions in "traditional" health care environments and with provider-centric technologies. For more information visit www.health2accelerator.org

About PharmaSURVEYOR
PharmaSURVEYOR, the most advanced drug safety utility, goes far beyond drug interaction checkers, is free to consumers and is also available as an online service for integration with healthcare and medical websites, applications and record systems. Powered by combinatorial risk assessment and resolution, consumers, clinicians, providers and payers can now identify, diagnose and resolve adverse drug effects responsible for 1 in 10 American fatalities at a cost of $177 billion annually. For more information visit www.pharmasurveyor.com

About First DataBank
First DataBank, a subsidiary of Hearst Corporation, drives patient safety and healthcare quality by providing drug databases that are used within information systems that touch every aspect of healthcare. For 30 years, we have partnered with system developers to integrate and optimize our drug information to improve user workflow and enhance clinical decision making by those entrusted with treating patients at the point-of-need. For more information about First DataBank, call 800-633-3453 or visit www.firstdatabank.com.

Contacts:
First DataBank: Denise Apcar
Phone: 650-872-4514
Email: denise_apcar@firstdatabank.com

Health 2.0 Accelerator: Julie Murchison
Phone: 415-513-3150
Email: jmurchinson@health2accelerator.org

PharmaSURVEYOR: Linda Von Schweber
Phone: 1-877-797-8783 x102
Email: linda@pharmasurveyor.com

© 2009 First DataBank, Inc. A subsidiary of Hearst Corporation. All trademarks mentioned herein are the properties of their respective owners.


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