The American Academy of Physician Assistants (AAPA) has announced that it is now part of the National Library of Medicine Information Rx programme. The partnership was formally launched at the 2010 AAPA annual conference.
With the Information Rx programme, physician assistants now have a new tool to help their patients find quality health information on the Internet. They can order special, free 'prescription pads' and use them during office visits to 'prescribe' information from NLM's consumer health Website, MedlinePlus.gov. The site includes more than 800 health topics; interactive tutorials for people with low literacy; a medical dictionary; an illustrated medical encyclopaedia; directories of hospitals and providers; surgical videos; and information in English and Spanish, with selected materials in nearly 50 other languages.
NLM initiated its Information Rx programme to help people better understand health information; enhance conversations between healthcare providers and patients; and to encourage the use of evidence-based health information on the Internet. In addition to the AAPA, three other healthcare associations have partnered with NLM on Information Rx. They are the American College of Physicians Foundation, the National Medical Association, and the American Osteopathic Association.
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