Media Advisory April 20, 1999 Contact: Mary Jo Deering 202-260-2652 U.S. DHHS REPORT: "WIRED FOR HEALTH AND WELL BEING" TO BE RELEASED APRIL 28TH Washington D.C.- On Wednesday, April 28th, 10:15 a.m., the final report of the Science Panel on Interactive Communication and Health, "Wired for Health and Well Being: The Emergence of Interactive Health Communication," will be released. Sponsored by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the report will be released during "The Emerging Health Information Infrastructure Conference" taking place at the Renaissance Washington D.C. Hotel, located at 999 - 9th Street NW (above H St.), in the Congressional Hall C Room. Study Director, Thomas Eng, VMD, MPH, will release the report at the 10:15 a.m. press availability, and states that, "A culture of scientific evaluation is needed to help ensure the reliability of the health information that consumers are so readily accessing over the Web." Also available for interview will be David Gustafson, PhD, Panel Chair; and Kevin Patrick, MD, Panel Member. Timely and helpful data on consumer use of Web health information will be handed out in a press kit. Of additional interest to the media will be the 8:45 a.m. plenary session, "Consumer Health Information," also on April 28. This session will include a live telehealth demonstration, as well as speakers: Senator Edward Kennedy (invited); Charles Safran, MD, Harvard Medical School; and Ellen Zangla, Manager, The Health Channel, AOL. The Science Panel on Interactive Communication and Health is comprised of 14 nationally recognized experts from a variety of disciplines related to interactive technologies and health. "The challenge of the next decade will be to transcend the surface appeal of these technologies and to understand and harness their power to improve the health of individuals and communities," stated a preliminary article by the Science Panel which appeared in the 10/14/98 issue of JAMA. The emergence of the field interactive health communication raises several major questions about its status, its future, and its ultimate impact on public health and health care. These pivotal questions are directly addressed in the final report, which includes a forward by U.S. Surgeon General Satcher. The report provides stakeholders -- including consumers, health professionals, developers and users of applications, and policy makers - guidance to help them make critical decisions about the use, purchase, design, and implementation of these emerging communication technologies. # # # TO ATTEND CONTACT ROSIE DEMPSEY AT 202-832-4633 OR [log in to unmask] ON SITE GO TO THE PRESS TABLE.