CHICAGO , IL and ARLINGTON , VA (May 16, 2006) —The Simon Foundation for Continence and The HealthCentral Network, a ChoiceMedia company, have formed a partnership to create new online resources for individuals with incontinence and related disorders. The partnership brings together the pioneering efforts of the Simon Foundation to “bring incontinence out of the closet” with The HealthCentral Network’s multimedia capabilities and vast online community of consumers and experts.
Initial projects for the partnership include collaboration on animations to address bladder health, and the development of active message boards addressing the challenges and daily triumphs of living with incontinence. The Simon Foundation (www.simonfoundation.org) is a leading force in promoting research for new treatments, launching innovative programs to improve continence care, and disseminating public education.
Building on a base of comprehensive medical information about incontinence, The HealthCentral Network seeks to leverage the wisdom and experience of the many individuals who cope with similar challenges. The HealthCentral Network’s new incontinence site is Incontinence-issues (main web address is www.healthcentral.com/incontinence). Through new tools such as customizable Web sites to support family caregivers, and regular blogs by those who have first-hand experience with incontinence, The HealthCentral Network hopes to provide the ultimate community site to alleviate embarrassment and isolation people with the symptom of incontinence often report.
“The HealthCentral Network’s redesigned Web sites focused on a number of prevalent chronic conditions represents a valuable opportunity to raise awareness about incontinence for people coping with certain types of cancer, diabetes, digestive disorders and other related conditions,” said Cheryl Gartley, President and Founder of the Simon Foundation. “We are particularly excited about addressing the stigma that surrounds a variety of common health conditions and prevents people from seeking effective treatment and care.”
“The HealthCentral Network is delighted to work with an organization as groundbreaking as the Simon Foundation, with its unique intersection of incontinence researchers, healthcare providers, patients and families,” said Chris Schroeder, Chief Executive Officer and President of The HealthCentral Network. “Our combined resources are complementary and offer new opportunities to increase public awareness about incontinence and its impact.”
About The HealthCentral Network
The HealthCentral Network (www.TheHealthCentralNetwork.com) has over 30 general health and highly specific condition and wellness web properties, each committed to offering a voice in every day and personal language people can understand and connect with at critical points in their lives. Each site provides timely, interactive, in-depth, and trusted medical information, personalized tools and resources, and connections to vast communities of expertise for people seeking to engage in, manage and improve their health. The award-winning, multi-media experiences combines medically-reviewed articles from doctors and researchers, as well as news, information, video and extensive engagement from every day people who have great experience and empathy in specific health areas. The Company also produces the Medical Breakthroughs television show, seen around the country.
Founded in the late 1990s as the ChoiceMedia, Inc, the company has recently been acquired by a team of blue-chip investors including Sequoia Capital, Polaris Ventures, The Carlyle Group and Allen and Company. With a management team that combines decades of experience in interactive media and medical, science and news journalism, The HealthCentral Network aims for the highest standards of quality, relevance and community for patients and their caregivers.
About the Simon Foundation for Continence
The mission of the Simon Foundation is to bring the topic of incontinence out of the closet, remove the stigma surrounding it, and provide help and hope to people with incontinence, their families and the health professionals who provide their care. Recent estimates suggest that 33 million Americans are affected by loss of bladder control and millions more by loss of bowel control. The Simon Foundation is dedicated to improving clinical treatment advocating on behalf of people with loss of bowel and bladder control.
The Foundation’s mission is supported by a Governing Board of Directors and an Advisory Board of professionals, many of whom have dedicated their careers to improving the clinical treatment of incontinence and advancing medical science through bladder and bowel research. Financially, the Foundation is sustained through educational grants, corporate contributions, sales of educational materials, and donations from individuals who understand the tremendous impact incontinence has on the daily lives of millions.