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Dr. David Maine, Director, Center for Interventional Pain Medicine (left), Dr. Robert Atlas, Chair, Department of Obstetrics (center) & Gynecology, and Dr. Neil B. Friedman, Director, The Hoffberger Breast Center at Mercy

Mercy Physicians Drs. Robert Atlas, David Maine And Neil B. Friedman Join WebMD.com's "Health Exchange"

Earlier this year, WebMD.com, a leading provider of health information services and known for its public Internet site, launched its “WebMD Health Exchange” project (to be renamed shortly as the WebMD Health Community), bringing together online experts in 56 condition/topic-focused discussions.

The WebMD Health Exchange is a two-way communication of a message board, enhanced with social networking-style tools for sharing information and engaging users.

Mercy’s Dr. David Maine, Director, The Center for Interventional Pain Medicine, and Dr. Robert Atlas, OB/GYN, Chair of Mercy’s Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, lead the WebMD Health Exchanges in Pain Management and Pregnancy, respectively.

Dr. Neil B. Friedman, Director, The Hoffberger Breast Center at Mercy, has also been recruited to appear as a Guest Expert on the Exchanges, joining conversations and sharing tips and resources concerning Breast Cancer, on a temporary basis (typically 3-6 weeks).

WebMD Health Exchange experts have direct interaction with readers through posting discussions, fielding questions and offering tips and resources. WebMD asks experts to start at least one discussion, provide two resources/tips and answer three questions from site visitors per week.

Exchanges are moderated by WebMD staff and feature “best-in-class experts” selected by WedMD.

By way of example, WebMD’s Pregnancy Health Center and message boards receive over 300,000 visitors per month (in 2007, it was reported that the WebMD.com site received more than 17.1 million unique visitors per month, making WebMD the leading health portal in the United States).