Medem, the organization recently created by APA and six other national medical societies to place the physician back in the center of health care information delivery, will have a major presence at APA’s annual meeting this year to unveil a new service, Your Practice Online.

This exciting member benefit will allow APA members to create a Web site for their practice that will be part of the Medem network. They will have the opportunity to register for their site, see demonstrations of the Site Builder Wizard, and browse examples of practice Web sites that have already been built.

All of this will take place in the APA Resource Center in the Exhibit Hall in McCormick Place.

Registering for Your Practice Online will take only five minutes. The Medem staff will take a digital photo and ask a few simple questions. Upon their return home, APA members or a staff member can build a practice Web site using the Site Builder Wizard.

The Site Builder Wizard is an easy-to-use online application for creating a professional, customized, feature-rich site that will add real value to APA members’ daily practice. Your Practice Online saves money and staff time, reduces phone calls, and increases patient satisfaction.

Medem will provide APA members with a storehouse of the most accurate and current patient and clinical information that APA has to offer. Each member then selects the information that is most relevant to his or her practice and patients for display on the practice Web site. Automated updates ensure the information is always current.

The Site Builder Wizard also allows members to create information specific to their practice (contact information, pre- and post-visit recommendations, frequently asked questions, insurance information, papers and other publicatons, and more).

Other physicians who have participated in pilot programs have had very favorable reactions to the opportunity to have this resource for their patients.

Commented Don Cinotti, M.D., of New Jersey: "The ability of our own online service to provide our patients with a blend of nationally credentialed health care information along with our own practice information and patient instructions is key."

George Tanaka, M.D., of California reported, "I have participated in countless sponsored activities in my years of medical practice, from educational seminars to coffee-mug giveaways. This service is the first sponsored program to deliver immediate and obvious value to my practice and my patients."

An office administrator from Wyoming said, "The Medem online service is great, and the entire office is excited and proud. We’re promoting it to all of our patients and taking out ads in the local paper. We’re certain that it will help us attract new patients and keep our current patients well informed."

This initiative is another example of APA’s commitment to its members and to innovation and leadership within the physician community.