Unbound Medicine, ASHP, and Consumers Union Release Family Drug Guide™

Mobile and Web Application Informs Consumer Decisions about Health

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va., Aug. 10 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Unbound Medicine, a leader in knowledge management solutions for healthcare, in collaboration with the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists (ASHP) and Consumers Union, the nonprofit publisher of Consumer Reports magazine and Consumer Reports Health, today announced the release of Family Drug Guide™, a mobile and web drug information resource for consumers.

Family Drug Guide is the first consumer-focused application from Unbound Medicine, using its award-winning Unbound™ Platform to help users navigate seamlessly on mobile devices and the web. The product integrates an up-to-date medication guide, Consumer DrugInfo from ASHP, with the drug effectiveness and price analysis of Best Buy Drugs™ from Consumer Reports Health. Family Drug Guide is available on the web and as an application for iOS (iPod touch®, iPhone®, and iPad™), BlackBerry®, and Android™ mobile devices.

Family Drug Guide empowers patients to make informed decisions about their healthcare by discussing the advantages and disadvantages of specific medications with their healthcare provider. Consumers can search or browse thousands of prescription drugs in Consumer DrugInfo to learn about a drug's uses and side effects. They can link to Best Buy Drugs to compare their drug to similar drugs based on its track record for effectiveness, safety, and cost. Users can keep track of medications with My Meds, a drug bookmarking tool, and consult Drug and Health News for the latest reports on prescription drugs and family healthcare.

"Giving patients access to drug comparison and cost information helps them take an active role in their healthcare," said Doris Peter, PhD, manager of The Consumer Reports Health Ratings Center. "Looking up drug comparison information right in the provider's office is a great way to improve safety and begin the critical dialog between the patient and the provider."

"Bringing the latest evidence-based drug information to patients is a big step in improving their healthcare and treatment options," said Carol Wolfe, vice president, ASHP Publications and Drug Information Systems. "This new application makes it easy for consumers to find important information about their medications while in the doctor's office, at the pharmacy, or at home."

"We wanted to bring Unbound Medicine's expertise in delivering reliable medical information in the professional market to consumers," said Bill Detmer, MD, president of Unbound Medicine. "With mobile access to the premier drug data and analysis in Family Drug Guide, individuals will have the confidence and knowledge needed to participate in healthcare decisions for themselves and their family members."

For more information, please visit www.familydrugguide.com.

About Unbound Medicine

Unbound Medicine is a next-generation healthcare knowledge company. Unbound produces award-winning mobile and web products for partners and healthcare professionals using its end-to-end digital publishing platform and information architecture expertise. Additional information is available at www.unboundmedicine.com.

About ASHP

For more than 60 years, ASHP has helped pharmacists who practice in hospitals and health systems improve medication use and enhance patient safety. The Society's 35,000 members include pharmacists and pharmacy technicians who practice in inpatient, outpatient, home-care, and long-term-care settings, as well as pharmacy students. For more information about the wide array of ASHP activities and the many ways in which pharmacists help people make the best use of medicines, visit ASHP's website, www.ashp.org, or its consumer website, www.safemedication.com.

About Consumers Union and ConsumerReportsHealth.org

Consumers Union is an independent, nonprofit organization whose mission is to work for a fair, just, and safe marketplace and to empower consumers as they research and buy products and services. Consumer Reports Health Best Buy Drugs™ is a public education project of Consumers Union, the publisher of Consumer Reports. For more information about ConsumerReportsHealth.org and Best Buy Drugs, visit http://www.ConsumerReportsHealth.org.

SOURCE Unbound Medicine