Medsite, a web-based pharmaceutical sales and marketing company, today announced the commencement of free, interactive, online continuing medical education programs to address catastrophic agents of bioterrorism.

John G. Bartlett, M.D. and Chief of the Division of Infectious Diseases at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, will edit the Interactive Grand Rounds (IGR) - Agents of Terror series. The A. Webb Roberts Center for Continuing Education of Baylor Health Care System will be providing CME sponsorship and the initiative is funded by a grant from Wyeth. The program will address pertinent issues involving the epidemiology, diagnosis, complications, prevention, and short- and long-term treatment of anthrax, smallpox, and the viral hemorrhagic fevers. An adjunct to the series will be the Biological Weapon Diagnosis and Reference Guide, an interactive database for condition-specific information. The Reference Guide has been developed as a differential diagnostic tool and will be available through a hyperlink from Medsite's IGR site.

"Most clinicians have never encountered conditions caused by agents of terror, and recognizing them is the challenge. The IGR educational platform delivers maximum impact in providing public health information with respect to biological, chemical, and nuclear warfare," says Sanjay Pingle, Medsite's Executive Vice President.

The interactive cases are designed to simulate real clinical scenarios for a dynamic learning experience. The simulated cases are challenging in content and provide the participant with a facile learning venue that is bookmarkable, printable, and allows for instant CME certificates. Vincent E. Friedewald, Jr, MD, an internist, cardiologist, and Professor of Multi-Media Communications at the University of Notre Dame, serves as executive editor of IGR.

"Among one of the most important challenges in healthcare today is the continuing education of our health care professionals. Medsite, as one of the leading providers of online CME, is pleased to provide IGR to help physicians meet this challenge," says Sundeep Bhan, CEO of Medsite. "Medsite plans to develop more cases dealing with bioterrorism as they are described by the CDC Strategic Planning Workgroup," continues Bhan.

Medsite offers clients solutions and services through its two sales divisions: Physician Access Solutions (PAS) and Medsite Partnership Services (MPS). PAS provides solutions to pharmaceutical and bio-tech companies, including GlaxoSmithKline, Pharmacia, Bristol Myers-Squibb and Wyeth. MPS provides services to more than 60 pharmaceutical marketing and communications companies, including Boron Lepore, SCS Healthcare, Nelson and PDI.