So what makes this website different? Well first of all, unlike other sites, all of the information presented on Empowered Medicine is written by health care professionals.  Empowered Medicines' creator, a pharmacist, composes much of and oversees all of the content presented on our website. You can read more about Dr. Christi Larson here.   

Empowered Medicine is a new website, focused on providing information that empowers people. At Empowered Medicine, we are committed to providing healthcare consumers with the latest, evidence-based healthcare information. Empowered Medicine focuses on providing information on the many chronic conditions we all suffer from as we age.

Information is power and with a record number of baby boomers with chronic health conditions coming onto the scene, the healthcare system is quickly becoming overwhelmed. It is more important than ever for healthcare consumers to get informed, stay current and be empowered. It is our goal to help people empower themselves with knowledge so they can take an active role in their health care.

As mentioned above, we offer medical information based on ‘evidence-based medicine’. The concept of evidence-based medicine is easy. It means that the best way to provide quality medical care is to base decisions on the best available scientific evidence. When a physician practices evidence-based medicine, the patient can rest assured that they are receiving current, high quality health care based on sound scientific evidence. When a physician does not use evidence-based medicine, the patient's health may be jeopardized.

Evidence-based medicine means utilizing official guidelines put forth by reputable organizations to make sound medical decisions. It does NOT mean prescribing medications because the drug company representative dropped off some free samples at the office. Today's health care consumers need to empower themselves with information so that they can work with their physician to decide which evidence-based therapies are right for them. Unfortunately for the consumer, much of the health information available on the internet today is not based on evidence-based medicine and may not even be written by a health care professional. Much of it is also conflicting.

At Empowered Medicine, all of the information presented on this site is based on official guidelines and evidence-based information. At Empowered Medicine, you have unlimited access to the latest, evidence-based healthcare information. For example, you have access to the Health Topics section of our site. Here you will find Original Empowered Medicine articles. These articles focus on the medication guidelines that physicians who use evidence-based medicine use. However, OUR articles translate this information into plain old English so that ALL of us can understand. No medical jargon here. You will also find a link to a comprehensive Drug and Herb Library and Drug Interaction Checker. Here you can look up information on individual medications such as side effects, doses, and how they work. You can also look up similar information on herbs in these libraries.

Also, take a moment to check out our special links. The Symptom Checker allows you to enter symptoms you may be experiencing and will help you narrow down a list of possible conditions that may be causing them.  The Medical Dictionary and Medical Encyclopedia are here to help you learn about new medical terms and look up medical conditions. The Doctor Directory is here to help you find a doctor in your area. The Other Resources tab links you to a variety of other health resources including libraries, organizations and government health sites. Also, don't forget to check out our Health Tools link which provides you with personal calculations on things like calories needed per day, your heart disease risk and your body mass index.

You may want to visit our Message Boards where you can connect with other users to talk about everything from diabetes to osteoporosis. You may also choose to receive our Free Monthly Empowered Medicine Newsletter . Our newsletter will be conveniently sent to your email inbox each month and will let you know about new featured articles and information. While you're here, don't forget to visit our Calender of Events. Here, we allow organizations to post health-related events in your area. For example, you can check out upcoming health fairs, health classes, immunizations and screenings in your area, no matter where you are in the U.S.

If after all of this you are still hungry for more information, check out our Related Reading tab where you will find a variety of books and audio resources available for you to order.

We hope that you will take advantage of the information we have put together for you. We look forward to having you as a new member of the Empowered Medicine family!