Posted on June 14, 2001 at 12:00 p.m.

BIRMINGHAM, AL — The UAB Health System has developed a tool for consumers new to the Internet to retrieve and manage their health information. More than 10,000 homes in the Hoover and Inverness communities received a CD-ROM in the mail that features an interactive tour of UAB Health System’s Web site [www.uabmedicine.org]. The CD features a personal health record component that allows individuals to store their health information on the hard drive of their computer.

“Keeping up with the family’s health records can be a daunting task,” says Debbie Hunter, director of marketing communications for the UAB Health System. “So providing a mechanism to help manage health information was compatible with our overall mission.” The form included on the CD-ROM is identical to that used throughout the UAB Health System.

Thus far, community response to the CD has been favorable. One week after the CD’s were mailed out, the Web site received 250 more visits than usual. More than 100 individual requests for additional CDs have also been received. A similar product targeted toward physicians is now in production and expected to be mailed this month.

“The people of Alabama have a world-class health facility in their backyard, and many people want to learn more about the research and medical care at UAB,” Hunter says. “Some of our research indicated that people who were new to computers or the Internet had difficulty finding health information on the Web. Our CD provides a simple, interactive tour of the UAB Health System Web site.”

The BLR Agency in Birmingham produced the CDs. For more information on the CD-ROM, call UAB Health Finder at (205) 934-9999.