Akron Children's Hospital Partners With Within3 To Launch Secure, Online Community For Pediatric Health Care Providers

CLEVELAND, March 16 /PRNewswire/ -- Akron Children's Hospital will soon launch a secure Web 2.0 community for pediatric health care providers using the Within3 platform.

Akron Children's Within3 site will allow providers throughout northeast Ohio to consult and collaborate with the hospital system's experts in a secure, online environment on behalf of their patients.

"Because Akron Children's cares for more than half a million patients each year, we're always looking for innovative ways to make access to our services more efficient and effective," said Norman Christopher, MD, chair of the Department of Pediatrics at Akron Children's Hospital. "We know our specialists are on the cutting-edge of some of the latest treatments and it's important for us to ensure our community providers have quick and easy access to this data."

The online community will strengthen communications between Akron Children's specialists and its referring physicians, as well as provide easy access to interactive tools that enable sharing and discussion of the latest pediatric clinical advancements, research, news and other information.

"When health care providers are able to easily collaborate in a secure fashion, real improvements in health care are achievable," said Lance Hill, CEO of Cleveland-based Within 3. "We believe the physicians at Akron Children's Hospital and those throughout the region will benefit from being able to come together in an online community setting to accomplish real work in the advancement of pediatric medicine."

About Akron Children's Hospital

Akron Children's Hospital cares for more than 500,000 patients each year and performs more pediatric surgeries than any other hospital in northeast Ohio. Children's operates a 253-bed pediatric hospital in downtown Akron, as well as a 32-bed inpatient unit at its Beeghly Campus in Boardman. Offering services at nearly 80 locations throughout the region, Children's has earned the Gold Seal of Approval from the Joint Commission and Magnet Recognition Status from the American Nurses Credentialing Center. In 2008, Akron Children's also became one of the founding members of the Austen BioInnovation Institute in Akron, a unique collaboration of research, education and health institutions to develop the next generation of life-enhancing and life-saving innovations. For more information, go to www.akronchildrens.org.

About Within3

Within3 is the leader in providing regulatory-compliant online community solutions that enable healthcare professionals to efficiently connect, collaborate, and share information on a 24/7 basis. Highly branded and customized, Within3 communities energize members by providing an array of interactive capabilities. Working with health systems, medical schools, professional associations, research groups and industry, Within3's goal is to ensure that each community adds value to both organizational clients and to individual members.  To learn more about Within3, call 216-391-4701 or visit www.within3.com

For more information, contact:

Holly Pupino – Akron Children's Hospital

330-543-3400 or [email protected]

Kathy Ruggeri – Within3

216-391-4701 or [email protected]

SOURCE Within3