Online Guide Ranks #1 Pharmacist-Recommended OTC Products

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Bill Schu, Group Editorial Director, (609) 716-7777, bschu@mdng.com

Online Guide Ranks #1 Pharmacist-Recommended OTC ProductsAuthoritative industry survey conducted by Pharmacy Times lists the OTC products pharmacists recommend the most, in a user-friendly print guide and website that is available to consumers

PLAINSBORO, NJ. (June 5, 2010)—Pharmacy Times announced the release of the OTC Guide—2010 Survey of Pharmacists’ OTC Recommendations at the NACDS Marketplace in San Diego, California. The survey, known as the “gold standard” for pharmacists’ over-the-counter recommendations, has been published by Pharmacy Times for 14 years, making it the most authoritative in the industry.

Pharmacy Times asked thousands of pharmacists to declare their preferred recommendations for OTC brands. Summaries of the most often recommended products are included in the survey, available as a supplement to the June issue of Pharmacy Times, as well as online on the updated Web site—www.OTCGuide.net. The results of the survey represent cumulative information in 14 distinct health categories and 145 product categories.

Across the country, pharmacists make more than 80 million recommendations to their patients every month regarding OTC medications. The Pharmacy Times exclusive annual survey is the most trusted source for pharmacist recommendations. The OTC Guide publication features a color-coded, easy-to-use design, as well as new editorial elements, including updates on a variety of OTC-related topics and new “Pharmacy Guides.” The Web site is organized in corresponding color-coded OTC group categories and provides additional OTC news, articles, and product news.

“We are excited to bring this authoritative guide of pharmacists’ OTC recommendations to the industry for the 14^th year in a row,” said Tighe Blazier, president of Pharmacy Times. “And we are proud of the recent expansion of the OTC Guide —including a consumer-friendly, expanded Web site at www.OTCGuide.net. The searchable product recommendations make this the go-to guide for OTC products.”

Searchable by category and product name, www.OTCguide.net is the most comprehensive guide of its kind to navigate OTC products available today. “The OTC Guide Web site is of interest not only to the pharmacists on the front lines of patient care, but also to the millions of consumers who consider the many OTC options available to them as they stand in the aisle,” Blazier said.

The print supplement to Pharmacy Times, OTC Guide, and the companion Web site, www.OTCGuide.net, now in its second year, help explain why patients turn to OTC products, especially in difficult economic times. Valuable information on how the pharmacist can help patients with cough, flu, and sunscreen products, among other OTC products, is included in this multimedia resource. Visitors can view comprehensive product recommendations for Cough/Cold/Allergies, Vitamins and Supplements, Diabetes Health Care, Pain/Inflammation, and other major health categories.

“We know that this multimedia Web site and publication will serve as a valuable resource year-round for the pharmacist and for consumers looking for help deciding which OTC product might be best for them,” said Mike Hennessy, Chairman and CEO of MJH & Associates, the publisher of Pharmacy Times. “The issue and online resource also provides the practical information for the pharmacist that our audience expects.”

AboutPharmacy Times

Pharmacy Times is a clinically based, monthly journal providing practical information pharmacists can use in their everyday practice. Each issue contains articles and features covering medication errors, drug interactions, patient education, pharmacy technology, disease state management, patient counseling, product news, pharmacy law, and specialty pharmacy. Pharmacy Times is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education (ACPE) as a provider of free continuing pharmacy education.

Pharmacy Times, published by Intellisphere, LLC, is a leading provider of health care publishing, research, information, and education. Operating within both traditional and digital media channels, Intellisphere serves the needs of health care professionals through an extensive suite of magazines, journals, e-mail databases, Web sites, events and personal meetings.

Intellisphere reaches more than half a million health care professionals through Pharmacy Times, The American Journal of Managed Care, The American Journal of Pharmacy Benefits, MDNG, HCPlive.com, Oncology & Biotech News, Oncology Net Guide, Contemporary Oncology, andOncology Net Guide: Nurses’ Edition.