Our Newsletter Gets a Facelift!

Our newsletter turns 80 this month so we felt it was time for a substantial update. It has a new name – Epocrates Pulse – chosen by you, and a new look, but as you’ll see, this facelift isn’t just skin-deep! Please let us know what you think of the new Epocrates Pulse newsletter.

It seems that our newsletter is following a growing trend in cosmetic procedures! According to The American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS), minimally invasive cosmetic procedures grew 66% from 2000-2006¹, and there is a growing market among men and younger patients, especially in metropolitan areas².

We’d like to hear your opinions of and experiences with cosmetic procedures — Would you undergo surgery to change your appearance? How do you advise patients who are unhappy with their looks? Do you think teenagers should be getting cosmetic surgery? Are we aging gracefully?

Visit Epocrates Insights: Cosmetic Procedures »

¹ ASPS Quick Facts   ² ASPS Press Release

CDC Guidelines for Influenza Prevention and Control 2007

The 2007 recommendations include six principal changes or updates, including: Consider the level of vaccination coverage among health-care personnel to be one measure of a patient safety quality program; implement policies to encourage health care worker vaccination; …

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Medical Myths: Can You Tell Which of These are Untrue or Unproven?

Which of these seven myths do you believe? People should drink at least eight glasses of water a day. We use only 10% of our brains. Hair and fingernails continue to grow after death. Eating turkey makes people drowsy. Reading in dim light ruins your eyesight. …

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Download messages like these when you AutoUpdate (sync) your handheld application. Learn More

Look-Alike, Sound-Alike Safety Information

The U.S. Pharmacopeia (USP)'s 2008 MEDMARX Data Report, which provides insights into the nation's largest database of medication errors, reveals that look-alike and sound-alike drugs — such as cefazolin/cephalexin, trazodone/triazolam — are among the main causes of drug errors. Indeed, each of the top 10 most prescribed drugs in America is commonly confused with at least one other drug.

"It is imperative clinicians are aware of this issue and use available resources to double check drug information when prescribing," says Darrell Abernethy, M.D., Ph.D., chief science officer, USP.

Epocrates is committed to helping healthcare professionals practice more safely. Prior to the release of this report, we began working with USP to incorporate warnings about more than 3,100 drug pairs that look and/or sound alike into our handheld and online drug references. Starting this week, our Medical Information team is working to add "Look/Sound-Alike Drug Names" to Epocrates drug monographs.

Expanded Support Hours

Epocrates' dedicated in-house support team is now available to respond to your online chat sessions. Visit your My Account for your support options.

Upcoming Meetings

HIMSS (Healthcare Information & Management Systems Society) — Feb. 24-28 in Orlando, FL

Updates at a Glance

New Drugs Blenoxane (bleomycin) bleomycin (generic) Bystolic (nebivolol) cetirizine (generic) Cordran SP (fludrandrenolide topical) granisetron (generic) Sanctura XR (trospium) Thrive (nicotine gum) Tagamet HB 200 (cimetidine) vitamin B3 (common name) (niacin) vitamin B9 (common name) (folic acid) Voltaren Gel (diclofenac topical)	New Formularies Jai Medical Systems (Maryland) BCBSF Health Kids (Florida)	MobileCME Activities ACE Inhibitors in Renal Hypertension Prediabetes to Diabetes: Preventing Progression Statin Therapy to Reduce Cholesterol in High-risk Patients
	How to Get these Updates Mobile: AutoUpdate (sync) your device regularly to download free updates, including new drug monographs and MobileCME activities. If you don't have MobileCME, download it here. Add new formularies to your profile in My Account. Online: Log in to Epocrates Online for continually updated drug information. Select new formularies in the DRUGS tab.

What handheld devices does Epocrates support?

Did you know that as well as Palm and Windows Mobile (Pocket PC), Epocrates now supports the Epocrates Rx® free drug reference on BlackBerry and Windows Mobile Smartphone devices? Plus, if you use an iPhone or iPod touch, you can access our mobile-enhanced Epocrates Online for free!

Learn more about supported platforms »

We'd like to feature YOU in the next newsletter!

Tell us about your experiences with Epocrates — have you used our software in an interesting location or event? Have our products helped you to solve a tough case or avoid an error? (patient info will of course be kept anonymous). Plus, we invite recommendations on blogs, non-medical PDA software, discussion topics, and more.

All customers featured in the newsletter will receive a free subscription to Epocrates Essentials Deluxe.

Email us your story »

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