HealthMark Multimedia Announces Receipt of SBIR Grant to increase pancreatic cancer patient education and treatment decision involvement.
Pancreatic Cancer: Your Decision Notebook® will be the fourth in this award-winning series for patients. Research will assist the developers in meeting patient, family member and provider needs.
(PRWEB) October 15, 2004 -- HealthMark Multimedia, LLC, has been awarded a
National Cancer Institute’s Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) grant to
produce a program for pancreatic cancer patients and their families to learn
about and make decisions about treatment, clinical trials enrollment, palliative
options and end-of-life care. A part of Healthmark Multimedia’s Decision
Notebook Series, the project is entitled, Pancreatic Cancer: Your Decision
Notebook®. Although the number of patients diagnosed with Pancreatic cancer is
relatively small, it is one of the most lethal cancers in the United States.
Four-fifths of patients will die within one year of diagnosis and only 5% of
patients survive for five years.
There is a dearth of educational
materials or decision-making assistance available for pancreatic cancer patients
and their families. The National Cancer Institute (NCI) Pancreatic Cancer
Progress Review Group in 2001 suggested that new tools be developed for both
health care providers and patients to assist and support patient involvement in
decision-making.
HealthMark’s Notebook will provide clear, concise
information and offer interactive tools to help users address decisions about
treatment, clinical trials, symptom and complications management, psychosocial
and communication support. In addition, it will address stress management,
end-of-life planning and bereavement services. The interactive tools will be
designed to help patients and their family members draw on their own values and
preferences to reach decisions. Users will be able to upload interactive tools
to their PDA. HealthMark will be testing the prototype with pancreatic cancer
patients and their family members throughout the country in November .
HealthMark Multimedia, LLC, develops multimedia products that use a
combination of graphics, audio, video and text to assist patients in making
treatment and self-care decisions, health care professionals for continuing
education and parents and children to learn about prevention and staying
healthy. The company uses an extensive network of medical experts, patients and
caregivers to review product information for accuracy, relevance and usefulness.
Healthmark Multimedia also develops customized multimedia projects for companies
and other organizations needing specialized health and human services
communications.
For further information about the company or its
products, contact HealthMark Multimedia: 1228 L Street NW, #250, Washington, DC
20036; Telephone: 202-265-0033; Fax: 202-448-6188. HealthMark Multimedia's home
page can be found at www.HealthMarkMultimedia.com, Information about the Your
Decision Notebook series can be found at www.yurdecisionnotebook.com.
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Source : http://www.prweb.com/releases/2004/10/prweb167693.htm