Baltimore, Maryland, June 10, 2009 — Physicians Practice and the Pocono Medical Center have joined forces to help provide area physicians and their staff more time to devote to patient care. This new partnership is a unique program designed to help doctors in and around Monroe County, Pennsylvania better handle the cumbersome and time-consuming issues of managing a busy practice. Through this new alliance, Pocono Medical Center will use Physicians Practice’s extensive resources to deliver essential practice management tools to help local physicians manage the business aspects of medicine more efficiently and effectively.

Physicians’ need for practice management information is an ever-increasing one. According to Pricewaterhouse Coopers, every hour a physician spends with a patient results in 36 minutes of paperwork. Additionally, the cost of running a medical practice has increased and now consumes as much as 62 percent of the revenue (2007 Medical Group Management Association Cost Survey), while reimbursement continues to decline from year to year (2006 and 2007 Physicians Practice Fee Schedule Surveys). Furthermore, according to the 2008 Future Physicians of America Survey, nearly 70 percent of medical students do not feel adequately prepared for managing or owning a practice in the future. 

In the new partnership, Pocono Medical Center will sponsor the distribution of Physicians Practice journal to approximately 500 local doctors in Monroe County, Pa., and surrounding counties in Pennsylvania and New Jersey. Physicians Practice will be mailed monthly, ten times a year, beginning in July, and will serve to help physicians and their office staff address the numerous challenges faced by today’s medical practices. The journal will also feature a section sponsored and written by Pocono Medical Center, highlighting the hospital’s latest clinical offerings as well as articles of interest to physicians in the region.

 “We are proud to offer this invaluable resource to our local physicians,” said Kathleen E. Kuck, President and CEO of Pocono Health System/Pocono Medical Center. “The partnership with Physicians Practice reflects our commitment to ensuring the success of our physicians and, therefore, better healthcare for our community.” 

“It is great to be able to partner with the Pocono Medical Center to bring practice management information and resources directly to local physicians,” says Marcy Holeton, Senior Vice President and General Manager of CMPMedica US. “Our expertise in practice management and technology will help Pocono Medical Center medical practices to spend less time on business and more time with patients.”

For more information on the benefits of partnering with Physicians Practice to improve patient care, visit www.PhysiciansPractice.com, and select For Hospitals.

About Physicians Practice

For more than 18 years, healthcare executives have turned to Physicians Practice to help them cultivate physician relationships. Physicians Practice maintains approximately 60 hospital partnerships and the journal is distributed to more than 255,000 practicing physicians. We create award-winning content and multimedia services to help community-based doctors in the United States and Canada strengthen their practice operations, which ultimately improves patient care. Physicians Practice is owned by CMPMedica, a division of United Business Media. Visit www.PhysiciansPractice.com for additional information about our acclaimed healthcare business education solutions.

About CMPMedica

Addressing today’s healthcare information needs, CMPMedica, a division of United Business Media Limited (UBM.L), delivers strategic, integrated communications solutions and comprehensive reach—online, in print, live, and via custom programs. Improving the effectiveness of healthcare through information and education, CMPMedica provides unbiased clinical, practical, and business information for physicians, providers, payers, and patients around the world. Through journals, magazines, directories, drug databases and other electronic databases, Web sites, face-to-face meetings, and other valuable resources, CMPMedica also delivers comprehensive communication solutions for the pharmaceutical and related industries. U.S. Web sites include PsychiatricTimes.com, CancerNetwork.com, 

DiagnosticImaging.com, ConsultantLive.com, PhysiciansPractice.com, and SearchMedica.com. Employing more than 1,400 people with offices in 29 countries, CMPMedica is headquartered in London.  For more information, visit www.CMPMedica.com.

About Pocono Medical Center

Pocono Medical Center is an acute-care hospital accredited by the Joint Commission of Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO), the national organization responsible for rigorous review of hospital procedures and policies.  PMC provides high quality, state-of-the-art acute medical care and is committed to patient satisfaction, education, and promotion of wellness.  Pocono Medical Center includes the Dale and Frances Hughes Cancer Center, the Clementine Abeloff Community Health Center, the Mattioli Emergency Center, the ESSA Heart and Vascular Institute and numerous other inpatient and outpatient services.  PMC is part of the Pocono Health System (PHS).  

PMC is also associated with Pocono Health Foundation; PMC Physician Associates: Hospitalists; PMC Physician Associates: Infectious Disease; PMC Physician Associates: Dental Care; PMC Physician Associates: General Surgery; Pocono Occupational Medicine; PMC Physician Associates: Orthopaedic Surgery; PMC Physician Associates: Pediatrics; PMC Physician Associates: Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery; Pocono Ambulatory Services; Pocono Healthcare Management, including the following services: PMC Physician Associates: Hematology and Oncology; PMC Physician Associates: Internal Medicine; PMC Physician Associates: Family Medicine; PMC Physician Associates Obstetrics and Gynecology and Pocono Healthcare Partners, a joint venture providing Advanced Radiology Services and the Center for Women’s Well-Being.

Hospital program contact:

Steve Gottshall

Associate Publisher

847-242-9552

steven.gottshall@cmpmedica.com

Media contact for Physicians Practice:

Amy Tubman

Senior Marketing Manager

410-818-2705

amy.tubman@cmpmedica.com

Media contact for Pocono Medical Center:

Geoffrey M. Roche 

Coordinator, Community and Government Relations

570-476-3767 

groche@pmchealthsystem.org

Physicians Practice captured three Gold Awards in the ASHPE 2009 Awards Competition, including:

Additionally, PhysiciansPractice.com, was granted a Bronze Award for Best Overall Web Publication. The site provides physicians and their staff with multi-media resources to help them better manage the business aspects of medicine more efficiently and effectively.

Marcy Holeton, Senior VP & General Manager of CMPMedica US adds that, "the ASHPE awards not only reflect our continued dedication to providing quality content in the Physicians Practice journal, but they also demonstrate the rapid advancements we've made online. As we further amalgamate our print and web publications, Physicians Practice will continue to lead the way with unique and innovative products in the rapidly advancing environments of practice management and technology."

"We're very proud of the team of dedicated journalists and business experts we've assembled here at Physicians Practice," said Executive Editor Bob Keaveney. "We're helping our community of physicians, administrators, and others involved in managing practices to be more efficient, which in turn helps them focus on what they really love -- taking care of their patients. That's our mission, and it's gratifying that a respected organization such as ASHPE would recognize us for achieving it."

Physicians Practice also received numerous awards in 2007 for outstanding editorial content, research, and design, and was named Publication of the Year by ASHPE in 2006.

About Physicians Practice

For more than 18 years, healthcare executives have turned to Physicians Practice to help them cultivate physician relationships. Physicians Practice journal maintains approximately 60 hospital partnerships and is distributed to more than 255,000 practicing physicians. We create award-winning content and multimedia services to help community-based doctors in the United States strengthen their practice operations, which ultimately improves patient care. Physicians Practice is owned by CMPMedica, a division of United Business Media. Visit www.PhysiciansPractice.com for additional information about our acclaimed healthcare business education solutions.

About CMPMedica

Addressing today's healthcare information needs, CMPMedica, a division of United Business Media Limited (UBM.L), delivers strategic, integrated communications solutions and comprehensive reach--online, in print, live, and via custom programs. Improving the effectiveness of healthcare through information and education, CMPMedica provides unbiased clinical, practical, and business information for physicians, providers, payers, and patients around the world. Through journals, magazines, directories, drug databases and other electronic databases, Web sites, face-to-face meetings, and other valuable resources, CMPMedica also delivers comprehensive communication solutions for the pharmaceutical and related industries. US websites include PsychiatricTimes.com, CancerNetwork.com,  DiagnosticImaging.com, ConsultantLive.com, PhysiciansPractice.com and SearchMedica.com. Employing more than 1,400 people with offices in 29 countries, CMPMedica is headquartered in London. For more information, visit www.CMPMedica.com.

CMPMedica Announces the Health Empowerment Initiative

Norwalk, CT, USA (May 27, 2009)

CMPMedica announced today that it has developed the Health Empowerment Initiative - a dynamic and innovative online healthcare education program for patients and their caregivers.

“As many studies have shown, a lack of ‘adherence’ to therapy can lead to poor outcomes,” said CMPMedica CEO, US, Sally Shankland. “Identifying patient knowledge gaps and providing patients with educational information to bridge those gaps can improve adherence and outcomes. While patient education information has become ubiquitous, in fact, it’s not as effective as it could be. We offer a new science-based approach to patient education that stems from the same rigor we apply to educating physicians. CMPMedica understands how to identify specific learning gaps, how to close those gaps, and how to leverage the connection between education and behavior. And our programs apply rigorous outcomes analytics to demonstrate success.”

CMPMedica has conducted research to identify specific areas in which patients’ understanding of their medical condition is lacking. These “knowledge gaps” are barriers to patients better managing their condition—whether this involves taking a medication as prescribed, eating a well-balanced diet, or altering behaviors. CMPMedica’s research revealed some alarming facts about patients’ perceptions of medical conditions such as hypertension, high cholesterol, and congestive heart failure.

One of the key findings of this study is that many patients appear to underestimate the potential consequences of their condition, even though many believe themselves to be well informed about the risks. For example, 60% of respondents do not know that hypertension is an important risk factor in the development of complications from diabetes.

CMPMedica’s research also confirms the importance of the Internet in patient education. In fact, the research found that the Internet is second only to the person’s physician as “the most helpful” source of health-related information. Accordingly, the Health Empowerment Initiative’s education programs include interactive Web sites that expand the participants’ understanding of specific healthcare topics and help motivate them to take steps to improve their own health.

CMPMedica is a recognized leader in medical education; in medical publishing; and in online media, including e-learning and Web site design and production. The company has combined its expertise with in-depth understanding of adult learning principles to develop online education programs that not only provide valuable healthcare information, but also:

- Engage participants so they learn more effectively, and help build and maintain commitment.
- Test and certify knowledge gained, and measure outcomes.
- Improve the overall effectiveness of healthcare.

For more information on the Health Empowerment Initiative (www.healthempowermentinitiative.com), contact Amy Sklar at amy.sklar@cmpmedica.com or 508-416-3431.

About CMPMedica
Addressing today’s healthcare information needs, CMPMedica, a division of United Business Media Limited (UBM.L), delivers strategic, integrated communications solutions and comprehensive reach—online, in print, live, and via custom programs. Improving the effectiveness of healthcare through information and education, CMPMedica provides unbiased clinical, practical, and business information for physicians, providers, payers, and patients around the world. Through journals, magazines, directories, drug databases and other electronic databases, Web sites, face-to-face meetings, and other valuable resources, CMPMedica also delivers comprehensive communication solutions for the pharmaceutical and related industries. US websites include PsychiatricTimes.com, CancerNetwork.com, DiagnosticImaging.com, ConsultantLive.com, PhysiciansPractice.com and SearchMedica.com.  Employing more than 1,400 people with offices in 29 countries, CMPMedica is headquartered in London.  For more information, visit www.CMPMedica.com.