International Foundation For Gastrointestinal Disorders Inc

RESEARCH AND EDUCATION OF GASTROINTESTINAL DISORDERS

EDUCATION: THE FOUNDATION PUBLISHES AN ENEWSLETTER, "DIGESTIVE HEALTH MONTHLY" THAT COVERS DIFFERENT AREAS OF GASTROINTESTINAL HEALTH IN ADULTS AND CHILDREN WITH UP-TO-DATE INFORMATION ON RECOGNIZING, DIAGNOSING, TREATING, AND LIVING WITH CHRONIC GASTROINTESTINAL ILLNESS. THE INFORMATION IS RELIABLE AND UNDERSTANDABLE BY LAY READERS, WHILE BEING AUTHORITATIVE FOR MEDICAL PROFESSIONALS. IFFGD CURRENTLY MAINTAINS TEN SEPARATE WEB SITES: WWW.IFFGD.ORG; WWW.ABOUTCONSTIPATION.ORG; WWW.ABOUTGIMOTILITY.ORG; WWW.ABOUTIBS.ORG; WWW.ABOUTGASTROPARESIS.ORG; WWW.ABOUTGERD.ORG; WWW.ABOUTINCONTINENCE.ORG; WWW.ABOUTKIDSGI.ORG; WWW.YOUANDCONSTIPATION.ORG; AND WWW.LOSNINOSYGI.ORG WHICH PROVIDE COMPREHENSIVE HEALTH INFORMATION FREE OF CHARGE. THESE WEB SITES CONTAIN OVER 300 ARTICLES WITH INFORMATION ON A RANGE OF TOPICS TO HELP INDIVIDUALS OR THE FAMILIES OF THOSE AFFECTED BY GI DISORDERS. MOST OF THE ARTICLES ARE WRITTEN BY LEADING INTERNATIONAL EXPERTS IN THE FIELD OF GI HEALTH AND RESEARCH. TO ENCOURAGE WIDE DISSEMINATION, ARTICLES ARE DISTRIBUTED EITHER FREE OF CHARGE. TOGETHER, THESE WEB SITES CURRENTLY AVERAGE AROUND 800,000 PAGE VIEWS PER MONTH. IFFGD MAINTAINS AN ONLINE FORUM TO GIVE PEOPLE AFFECTED BY ALL CHRONIC DIGESTIVE DISORDERS A SAFE AND SUPPORTIVE PLACE TO DISCUSS ISSUES SURROUNDING THESE SENSITIVE TOPICS. BY OPENLY SHARING THEIR EXPERIENCES OF LIVING WITH A CHRONIC DIGESTIVE DISORDER, PATIENTS AND FAMILY MEMBERS CAN LEARN FROM OTHERS IN THE DIGESTIVE HEALTH COMMUNITY AND, IN TURN, ARE GIVEN THE OPPORTUNITY TO ENCOURAGE AND SUPPORT THOSE WHO MAY BE SUFFERING.IN 2019, IFFGD LAUNCHED A NEW PROJECT, RESEARCH ON THE ROAD, A SERIES OF VIDEO INTERVIEWS ON KEY TOPICS RELEVANT TO THE GASTROINTESTINAL ILLNESS COMMUNITY. WORKING WITH RESEARCHERS AND CLINICIANS FROM AROUND THE WORLD, THIS PROGRAM AIMS TO PROMOTE AWARENESS AND EDUCATION ON TOPICS OF INTEREST TO THE DIGESTIVE HEALTH COMMUNITY THROUGH VIDEO-BASED LEARNING. THESE VIDEOS ARE USED IN CONJUNCTION WITH AWARENESS EVENTS AS WELL AS THROUGHOUT THE YEAR AS THEY ARE RELEVANT TO CURRENT EVENTS. THIS PROGRAM CONTINUES IN 2021.IFFGD LAUNCHED THE ANIMATED PATIENT'S GUIDE TO CONSTIPATION. THIS EDUCATIONAL WEBPAGE, WWW.YOUANDCONSTIPATION.ORG, COVERS THE DIFFERENT TYPES OF CONSTIPATION FACED BY PATIENTS AND HELPS THEM TO BETTER UNDERSTAND HOW TO TALK TO THEIR PHYSICIAN ABOUT THEIR SYMPTOMS AND TREATMENT OPTIONS. OF THE 46,363 VISITORS TO THE SITE, 86% ARE PATIENTS, 5% ARE HEALTH CARE PROVIDERS, 3% ARE CAREGIVERS AND 6% CHOSE "OTHER." SURVEY RESULTS ALSO INDICATE THAT A HIGH PERCENTAGE OF PATIENTS WILL TAKE NEW QUESTIONS TO THEIR DOCTORS, CHANGE HABITS IN THEIR TREATMENTS, AND LEARNED NEW OPTIONS FOR TESTING AND DIAGNOSIS. ALSO IN 2021, WHILE FACED WITH OBSTACLES AND MANY UNCERTAINTIES DURING THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC, IFFGD EXPLORED NEW WAYS TO DISSEMINATE UP-TO-DATE INFORMATION TO THE PATIENT COMMUNITY. FOR EXAMPLE, IFFGD COLLABORATED WITH MEDICAL PROFESSIONALS TO CONTRIBUTE TO A NEW IFFGD PROGRAM ON COVID-19. THIS PROGRAM WAS DESIGNED TO PROVIDE THE PATIENT COMMUNITY WITH INFORMATION ON A VARIETY OF TOPICS, SUCH AS, COVID-19 AND GI SYMPTOMS; MANAGING STRESS DURING A PANDEMIC; RESEARCH STUDY UPDATE ON COVID-19 AND THE IMPACT ON THOSE LIVING WITH GASTROINTESTINAL DISORDERS.THE FOUNDATION HAS A PATIENT ADVISORY COMMITTEE AND PATIENT PANEL, WHICH CONTINUE TO WORK WITH FOUNDATION LEADERSHIP TO GIVE FEEDBACK AND GUIDANCE IN ALL EDUCATIONAL PROGRAMS. MEMBERS OF BOTH THE PATIENT ADVISORY COMMITTEE AND PATIENT PANEL REPRESENT A DIVERSE RANGE OF AGES, GEOGRAPHIES, DIAGNOSES, AND ILLNESS EXPERIENCES. THE PATIENT PANEL IS CURRENTLY COMPRISED OF OVER 1,500 PATIENTS, FAMILY MEMBERS, AND CAREGIVERS INTERESTED IN HELPING TO GUIDE THE PROGRAMS AND ACTIVITIES OF IFFGD.RESEARCH AND AWARENESS: AS "AWARENESS" DAYS AND WEEKS ARE OBSERVED ON THE U.S. NATIONAL HEALTH OBSERVANCES CALENDAR, THE FOUNDATION RECOGNIZES AND MAKES SPECIAL EFFORTS THROUGH ITS PUBLICATIONS, WEB SITES, AND THROUGH THE PRODUCTION AND DISTRIBUTION OF PUBLIC SERVICE ANNOUNCEMENTS THAT ARE DISTRIBUTED THROUGH PRINT, SOCIAL MEDIA NETWORKS, AND THE INTERNET TO FOCUS ATTENTION ON THE IMPORTANT HEALTH ISSUES BEING RAISED. SOME OF THESE INCLUDE, BUT ARE NOT LIMITED TO: IBS AWARENESS MONTH (APRIL), GERD AWARENESS WEEK (NOVEMBER), GASTROPARESIS AWARENESS MONTH (AUGUST). THE FOUNDATION CONTINUALLY PROVIDES HEALTH MESSAGES TO THE GENERAL PUBLIC ABOUT GI DISORDERS AND INCONTINENCE IN A RANGE OF DIVERSE MEDIA OUTLETS ONLINE OR IN PRINT, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO: WEBMD, REALAGE, LIVESTRONG, HEALTH DAY NEWS, EXCEPTIONAL PARENT MAGAZINE, MODERN MEDICINE, MEDICAL NEWS TODAY, ENDONURSE, GASTROENTEROLOGY & ENDOSCOPY NEWS, GOOD HOUSEKEEPING, REDBOOK, PARADE, SELF,PREVENTION MAGAZINE, US NEWS & WORLD REPORT, COSMOPOLITAN, THE WASHINGTON POST, LA TIMES, NEW YORK TIMES, WALL STREET JOURNAL, AND THE DAILY YOMIURI (TOKYO), CBS THIS MORNING/EARLY MORNING SHOW, THE TODAY SHOW, FOX NEWS, CNN HEADLINE NEWS, AND NATIONAL PUBLIC RADIO'S "LIVING WITHOUT LIMITS".