Yesterday, Merck Vaccine Division, Merck & Co., Inc., launched True Champions, a resource-rich new addition to its vaccine information and ordering site, MerckVaccines.com.

The True Champions program was created to recognize the role that nurses and medical assistants play in disease prevention, as well as to provide an interactive, one-stop educational resource to these professionals. True Champions is one of the first programs aimed specifically at nurses and medical assistants, with the goal of enabling these professionals to maintain confidence in the their roles and discussions about disease-prevention with both patients and colleagues.

The program provides a valuable network of resources to registered members of MerckVaccines.com. Many of these resources were created based on feedback from nurses nationwide. Included are:

-- Vaccine and disease information including an interactive tutorial
-- Interactive vaccine storage and handling guide
-- Links to independent sites offering continuing educational opportunities
-- Nursing scholarship information at the University of Pennsylvania funded by a grant from Merck Vaccine Division
-- Opportunities to share ideas and experiences with other True Champions members.

Linda Kerr, President of the Ohio chapter of the National Association of Pediatric Nurses Practitioners, says "nurses have always been advocates for preventative healthcare. True Champions empowers nurses to be even more proactive for their clients by providing a quality link to important vaccine information, standards and support. This website assists nurses in becoming `true champions' in disease prevention."

To learn more about the program, visit MerckVaccines.com.