Pfizer Health Solutions Challenges Industry Leaders to Put New York, NY—Pfizer Health Solutions Inc (PHS) today announced it is donating $10,000 in scholarship money to Healthy Living Academies (HLA), a division of Aspen Education Group, which operates the first therapeutic residential boarding school for overweight children and young adults. The PHS scholarship money has already found a very happy recipient, Jeannine Hodge, age 16, from Lake City, Florida. She can now enroll in HLA's Academy of the Sierras program in the spring of 2006. Jeannine believes that this opportunity will ultimately save her life, help her lose weight and learn how to take control of her health. "Losing weight has been one of my biggest dreams. My back constantly aches and sometimes my breathing feels weird," said Hodge, who has tried unsuccessfully to lose weight over the course of her life. "I'd rather be around teenagers who can encourage me to keep going because they know how it feels. My spirits would be so much higher if I had a normal, reasonable weight." The donation is a result of the first "Leading the Walk" fitness challenge at the Disease Management Association of America's (DMAA) 2005 Leadership Forum in San Diego, CA. Every conference attendee was given a pedometer at registration and was challenged to walk at least 10,000 steps during the October 16-18 conference to raise funds to help fight childhood obesity. "Successful prevention and wellness programs, such as Healthy Living Academies, are a major topic of discussion among DMAA industry leaders at this year's Forum, said Tracey Moorhead, DMAA's Executive Director. "Instead of remaining sedentary during discussions that include educating people how to proactively lead healthier lives, we felt it was important to lead by example and put our own practices to good use." "Successful prevention and wellness programs, such as Healthy Living Academies, are a major topic of discussion among DMAA industry leaders at this year's Forum, said Tracey Moorhead, DMAA's Executive Director. "Instead of remaining sedentary during discussions that include educating people how to proactively lead healthier lives, we felt it was important to lead by example and put our own practices to good use." The annual DMAA Leadership Forum brings together individuals and companies who are established leaders in the disease management community. This is the first year for its "Healthy Living by Example" program. In addition to the PHS "Leading the Walk" challenge, the DMAA also provided attendees with nutritional guidance for healthy meals, including cooking demonstrations. Participants were also encouraged to attend various fitness classes and health-related social events. "Chronic conditions often times reach beyond the patient and affect the families and communities in which they live, but with the right tools and the right education, better health leads to lower costs and a better quality of life," said John Sory, VP of Pfizer Health Solutions. "PHS is proud to share our experiences at DMAA with other health experts that are as committed as we are to providing community based, patient-centered care." A platinum sponsor of the Leadership Forum, Pfizer Health Solutions is the care management subsidiary of Pfizer. With ten years of experience, PHS is working to help change the health care system to focus on preventative care and keeping people healthy. Pfizer has recently installed an internal program that provides resources and incentives to help its employees to take more personal responsibility for their health. The program brings findings and models of care delivery that have been tested by Pfizer Health Solutions over the past 10 years back "home" to Pfizer employees and their families. "The Directors of the Academy of the Sierras, on behalf of Jeannine Hodge, are extremely grateful to the fine folks of Pfizer Health Solutions for providing funding for Jeannine to attend a full semester at the Academy, beginning January 2006," said Dr. Dan Kirschenbaum, Clinical Director of Healthy Living Academies. "To reduce the risk of obesity, it crucial that organizations like DMAA and Pfizer Health Solutions continue to work together to pursue their dedication to improving the health of our children." # # # About the Disease Management Association of America About Pfizer Health Solutions |
