Wolters Kluwer Health Announces Winner of Second Annual Facts & Comparisons® Enhancement Scholarship

MINNEAPOLIS, MN – Dec 21, 2010 – Wolters Kluwer Health, a leading global provider of information for healthcare professionals and students, announced today that Andrew Gifford of Midwestern University-Glendale College of Pharmacy is the winner of the 2010 Facts & Comparisons® Enhancement Scholarship. Gifford will receive tuition reimbursement in the amount of $5,000 and his proposed enhancement will be considered for a future release of Facts & Comparisons® eAnswers.

Scholarship applicants were asked to write a short essay describing an innovative product enhancement for Facts & Comparisons eAnswers. Gifford’s addressed the need for a medication therapy management tool that lists each patient’s disease state and medication therapies, ensuring that all items are accounted for and no contradictions exist between lists. The tool would run much like the interaction checker already included in Facts & Comparisons. However, the proposed tool would also deliver updates to keep providers current on guidelines, which would translate to better patient outcomes.

Committed to providing exemplary educational opportunities, the Facts & Comparisons Academic Partnership Program serves as a valuable resource to students enrolled in participating pharmacy schools. Program components include a university-wide license, off-campus access, exclusive product discounts, student scholarship and awards and a direct product feedback channel to Facts & Comparisons staff.

To be eligible for the Facts & Comparisons Enhancement Scholarship, students must be enrolled in a school of pharmacy that participates in the Academic Partnership Program. Applications were evaluated by a cross-functional selection committee based on the perceived degree of the enhancement’s innovation; clinical relevance; clinical usefulness; and/or contribution to the ease-of-use/navigation/user experience.

“This year’s applicants showed an impressive level of innovation in their proposed enhancements to Facts & Comparisons eAnswers,” said Arvind Subramanian, President and CEO, Wolters Kluwer Health Clinical Solutions. “However, the selection committee was most impressed by Andrew’s focus on closing a critical information gap that will allow pharmacists to provide enhanced patient care.”

Facts & Comparisons eAnswers provides retail pharmacies and academia with online access to the most up-to-date drug information tailored to their unique needs, enabling better therapeutic decisions in less time. For the academic community, it provides students, residents and faculty with instant access to reliable, current drug information and medication management tools. Helpful links, student and resident support, scholarships and other information are also available to help meet course and drug reference needs.

For pharmacies, Facts & Comparisons eAnswers addresses the key pain points of workflow efficiency and patient safety by providing the tools and information needed to support drug dispensing activities. These include patient safety screenings for Drug Utilization Review and drug reference information, which result in a decrease in drug dispensing errors.

About Wolters Kluwer Health

Wolters Kluwer Health (Philadelphia, PA) is a leading provider of information and business intelligence for students, professionals and institutions in medicine, nursing, allied health and pharmacy. Major brands include traditional publishers of medical and drug reference tools and textbooks, such as Lippincott Williams & Wilkins; and electronic information providers, such as Ovid^®, UpToDate^®, Medi-Span^®, Facts & Comparisons^® and ProVation^® Medical.

Wolters Kluwer Health is part of Wolters Kluwer, a market-leading global information services company. Professionals in the areas of legal, business, tax, accounting, finance, audit, risk, compliance, and healthcare rely on Wolters Kluwer’s leading, information-enabled tools and solutions to manage their business efficiently, deliver results to their clients, and succeed in an ever more dynamic world.