NY Times January 8, 2001 Digital Doctoring 90,000 doctors have downloaded a free version of ePocrates, the drug- reference software program for hand-held devices that checks drug interactions, appropriate doses and side effects. http://www.nytimes.com/2001/01/08/technology/08HAND.html SAN CARLOS, Calif. November 28, 2000 ePocrates Launches New Free Version of the Leading Medical Handheld Clinical Drug Reference Guide ePocrates, the largest handheld network for physicians, announced today that it has launched a new free version of qRx™, its flagship product. The new and improved ePocrates qRx 4.0 provides immediate access to more valuable clinical information, including MultiCheck™, a feature that allows users to simultaneously check up to 30 medications for drug interactions before writing a prescription. qRx 4.0 is also the first drug reference guide providing regularly updated retail pricing information, enabling physicians to make more informed prescribing decisions. Additional new product features include mechanism of action and packaging information. As with earlier versions of qRx, the AutoUpdate™ feature provides continuous updates on new FDA-approved compounds, changes in drug indications and product recall information "More physicians are using qRx than any other medical software application," says John Voris, CEO and president of ePocrates. "We maintain a continual dialogue with them to determine how we can best meet their existing and anticipated needs. qRx 4.0 was developed as a result of these exchanges and will help improve both patient care and patient outcomes." "qRx 4.0 is a marvelous tool without parallel in clinical medicine," according to William Thompson, MD, a pulmonologist from Nashville, Tennessee. "To be able to check for potential drug interactions at the bedside is very important to me. I am repeatedly asked by patients whether there is a risk of drug interactions and now I can be sure that the answer that I give is completely informed." Physicians using ePocrates qRx handheld clinical drug reference avoided one or more adverse drug events per week according to the results of a study conducted this year at Brigham and Women's Hospital, a teaching affiliate of Harvard Medical School. The results of this study were presented recently at the Medical Informatics Association annual meeting in Los Angeles. According to a National Institute of Medicine report released last year, for every dollar spent on ambulatory medications, another dollar is spent to treat new health problems caused by the medication itself. The report goes on to say that while drug-related morbidity and mortality is preventable, numerous studies document errors in prescribing. According to the authors automated information and decision support systems are effective in reducing many types of errors. Since its launch 12 months ago, ePocrates qRx has been used by over 130,000 healthcare professionals, of which 80,000 users are physicians. ePocrates qRx was initially developed by a distinguished team of more than 35 physicians and pharmacists from around the country and today a team of over 50 physicians provides ongoing support of the product. In addition to the qRx clinical drug database, ePocrates will soon offer an infectious disease guide with antimicrobial recommendations, formulary decision support tools, and additional transaction-based services, including electronic prescribing. Headquartered in San Carlos, Calif., ePocrates is a privately held company led by President and CEO John Voris, former PCS COO and Eli Lilly veteran. The company was founded in 1998 by Richard Fiedotin, MD and Jeff Tangney and is funded by Sprout Group, Bay City Capital, Draper Fisher Jurvetson, InterWest and Three Arch Partners. For more information, please visit http://www.epocrates.com. Contact: Lydia Green, RPh phone: 650.232.4803 email: lgreen@epocrates.com R. Gregory Jones McCormick Communications phone: 908.876.5988 email: RGregoryJones@compuserve.com Copyright ©2000 ePocrates, Inc., All Rights Reserved.