About Patient2Patient
Our Mission
Our Advisory Board
Our Staff


Patient2Patient

Based in New York City, Patient2Patient, LLC is an independent, patient-focused company, directed by a diverse group of professionals who have lived with serious illnesses. Patient2Patient is the first company to develop a series of Patient WebGuides that enable patients and caregivers to effectively locate needed disease & condition information and resources on the Internet.

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Our Mission

Our mission is to help patients and their families who are struggling with illness by providing them with the critical medical information, resources, and practical tools they need to survive and thrive.


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Our Advisory Board

Our Advisory Board includes professionals and individuals with backgrounds ranging from foundations to corporations and from business to health care. All of them, whether as patients, caregivers, physicians or nurses, have an understanding of the difficulties patients and their families face. They bring a desire to help.

Our Advisory Board

MARY TERRY, Ph.D.
Chairperson of the Advisory Board
Patient2Patient, Inc.
Biochemist, teacher, breast cancer patient

LEE FEINBERG
Founder and President
e-thusiasm, Inc.

ADEE FEINSTEIN
President and Co-Founder, Clinication, Inc.

HARLEY GELLER, M.D.
Chief of Cardiothoracic Anesthesia
Carolinas Medical Center

FRANCIS GOODWIN, Lic. Ac.
Faculty Member
Pacific School Of Oriental Medicine

BARRON LERNER, M.D., PhD.
Angelica Berrie Gold Foundation Associate Professor of Medicine and Public Health
Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons

MICHAEL L. MILLENSON
Mervin Shalowitz, M.D.Visiting Scholar at Northwestern University's Kellogg Graduate School of Management
Author of Demanding Medical Excellence, Doctors and Accountability in the Information Age.

BARBARA SEAMAN
Author, Journalist and Co-Founder of The Women's Health Network

JODI SHAEFER, R.N., PhD.
President
HealthCareAnswers.net

DEBRA L. WEINSTEIN, PH.D.
Executive Director
Society for Leukocyte Biology



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Our Staff

Andrew Robinson, J.D., Founder, CEO, Publisher

Andrew Robinson was a highly regarded New York City trial attorney before he was diagnosed with what was considered to be a terminal and incurable form of leukemia. Confronted with this news, Andrew embarked on a countrywide search for the best medical and alternative treatments. During this time he met and came under the care of dozens of doctors, undergoing various courses of chemotherapy, I.V. therapy, immune therapy, and cell therapy. When Andrew’s disease proved resistant to all forms of treatment, he traveled with his family to Israel where in 1998 he underwent a form of bone marrow transplant not yet available in this country.

This treatment was successful, but it resulted in severe complications that caused him to remain in Israel for a year and a half. During the course of his illness Andrew was hospitalized over three-dozen times. For both curative and therapeutic purposes he has undertaken over twenty different modalities of complementary and alternative therapies.

Andrew’s leukemia is in remission but he continues to struggle as a patient, battling the side effects of his treatment, including Osteopenia with spinal fractures and Avascular Necrosis (bone tissue death) in his shoulders, elbows and knees.

The idea for Patient2Patient® was born out of Andrew's experiences - as well as his interaction with hundreds of other patients - and his desire to help others undergoing similar life-threatening struggles.

Andrew is a featured speaker at health conferences throughout the United States, most recently at the "Foundation for American Health Care Leadership" and The New York Times Forum on Health. He speaks on a variety of topics including the health care system, eHealth and understanding the "Patient Experience." The Wye River Group on Health Care has referred to Andrew as "The most effective voice for patients in the U.S." He is currently writing a book based on his experiences that teaches patients how to take charge of their health care and guides them through the labyrinth of the modern health care system.

Jeffrey A. Zonenshine - Chief Information Officer

Jeffrey is a certified, award-winning Information Technology consultant with fifteen years experience in the technology arena. He was CIO for the Marvel Entertainment Group, Century 21 Real Estate, and Aerosoles footwear. He was acclaimed for moving two of these companies from technology stragglers to recognized technology leaders in their respective industries in less than two years. Computerworld, a highly respected trade weekly, named him one of the "Top 100 Most Effective Managers of Technology".

Jeffrey saw the human value of the type of information Patient2Patient provides access to when a close friend was diagnosed with stomach cancer and given only six months to live. His friend researched experimental treatments and complementary therapies that helped him extend his life for another ten years. This personal experience showed Jeffrey that gaining medical advice of the kind that Patient2Patient focuses on can make a dramatic and real difference in human life.

Wendy Meyeroff - Managing Editor

Wendy is an internationally published consumer health writer who has been providing patients with information on health issues for more than twenty years. She has been health editor of Senior Wire News Syndicate (which is distributed world-wide) since 1987, and her by-line has appeared regularly in numerous print and electronic outlets. These include the newspapers The New York Times and The Dallas Morning News; the magazines Weight Watchers, Good Housekeeping, and Arthritis Today; and in books including "The Healing Power of Vitamins, Minerals and Herbs" (Reader's Digest Books). She was one of the original contributors to both the American Medical Association's patient Website and CBSHealthwatch.com, and her work has appeared on other sites, including OnHealth.com and Halftheplanet.com.

Wendy has a strong background in developing clinically-oriented materials for doctors, nurses, and other health professionals and brings to Patient2Patient extensive expertise as an editorial executive, having been the managing editor or project manager for numerous projects (including Physician's Fitness, a fitness and nutrition consumer newsletter) since 1978. Wendy is the Chair of the Medical Affinity Group of the Editorial Freelancers Association. Her work in all aspects of health communications has made her much sought-after as a teacher and speaker.

Wendy brings a special empathy to patient-oriented information as she's lived with a chronic medical condition since she was three years old. Her husband claims she became a medical writer because "it was the only way to force a doctor to give her a straight answer to her questions." That's why Patient2Patient's mission -- helping patients find solid, balanced, health care information -- resonates with her. She's found that need has become even more critical in an era in which there's an overwhelming amount of health information, and little guidance in determining which of it is truly reliable.

Lester Hoffman, PhD - Web Medical Editor

Lester brings to Patient2Patient more than twenty-five years experience as a medical and technical writer, editor, and instructional designer for print publications, the Internet, and multimedia. A former medical journals and book editor, Lester has written, rewritten or edited over 1,000 research papers, consumer articles, books, and training programs in over a dozen fields of medicine.

Lester has worked on the development of nearly two dozen websites, focusing on website navigational structure and ease of use. Based on his expertise in usability analysis, he has provided training to clients including FedEx, Goldman-Sachs, Merrill Lynch, Lockheed-Martin, the US Navy, Mitsubishi, Chase, and Prudential Securities. He designed the User Interface for PMIQ, a best-selling Project Management software learning tool used by over half the Fortune 500 corporations.

Based on his own experience with overcoming Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, Lester brings to Patient2Patient a deep commitment to providing patients with information and tools that are understandable, accessible and usable.

Kathleen McGarvey-Philippi, Clinical Nurse - Senior Health Editor

Kathleen brings to Patient2Patient twenty years experience as a comprehensive care nurse in major NYC hospital settings. Her areas of specialization include neurosurgery and general surgery, oncology, high-risk maternity care, bone marrow transplants, and pediatrics. Her medical writing background includes positions as both a medical editor and writer for numerous websites, including WebMD, Health A to Z, WellnessWeb, KidHealth.org, and the Health Connection. She has hosted health-centered Internet chats and acted as a message board moderator. Kathleen has appeared on CNN's interactive website and on WABC Channel 7 New York. She is a member of the Editorial Advisory Board for Advance Magazine for Nurses - NY/NJ edition.

Kathleen's interest in the mission of Patient2Patient stems from both her medical background and her own experience as a caregiver. She is the mother of four children. Two days after her youngest son was born he was diagnosed with three congenital heart defects, which required two open-heart surgeries. Kathleen has devoted much of her time to nursing her son back to health.

Ann Farmer - Senior Editor

Ann has been working in both print and online news journalism for the past decade. She has reported on national and local news for The New York Times and has contributed to numerous other publications, including The Village Voice, More, Emmy, Womensenews, and Women.com. As a writer for Yahoo! Internet Life she regularly reviewed Internet sites on a range of topics including acupuncture, eldercare, and men's health. At the Center for Reproductive Law and Policy she wrote and edited publications covering the latest news and issues surrounding women's reproductive health and rights. Ann received her Master's degree from the Columbia Graduate School of Journalism.

Personal experiences have shown Ann the importance of successfully navigating the medical and eldercare industries. When her mother was diagnosed with a terminal brain cancer, she and her siblings had to make fast, pressured decisions on her care and treatment. Ann also assists in the routine care of her father, who is diagnosed with the autoimmune disease Myasthenia Gravis. And she oversees the care of an elderly aunt who has experienced several strokes.

Michael Rose, J.D., EEE, MSEE, BE(E) - Editor, Business And Technology.

Michael is an attorney with business and technology experience and a systems/communications engineer. While Broadcast Counsel for one of the major broadcast television networks, Michael helped establish the rules governing broadcast teletext and develop the leading on-air teletext service, the granddaddy of the Internet as we now know it. As an engineer, he designed and developed software that is a forbearer of digital radar systems. He has served as (Co-)Chair and Moderator of panels including: The Internet - Changing Trends in Entertainment and Commerce: Business and Legal Perspectives; and Chair of Advanced Television, PC/TV & Multicasting - the Outlook for Digital Television.

Both Michael's parents succumbed to cancer. In the 20 years between the treatment of his father's and his mother's illnesses, he has seen medicine become more humane and concerned with the health and comfort of the patient. His commitment to Patient2Patient arises out of his experience as his mother's caregiver and his recognition that when a chronic illness affects the physical health of one family member it affects the mental and emotional health of the family, and each of its members.

Hananya Goodman - Internet Librarian

Hananya Goodman has nearly ten years experience in the fields of library and information science and database management/database searching. In addition to his training in these areas, he has also studied extensively in such fields as Web page design and software engineering documentation. His career has included such positions as Library Director, Reference Librarian, Electronic Reference Specialist, and Manager of Intellectual Property Collection at such institutions as the Boston University Library, the Franklin Pierce Law Center, and the Negev Academic College of Engineering in Israel. He has also been a Program Director and Education Director.

Hananya has a Master's Degree in Library and Information Science from the Simmons Graduate School and a B.S. from the University of Wisconsin. He has extensive experience in academic publishing, as well a having written and edited numerous scholarly books, anthologies, and articles. He is a contributor to the Women's Studies Encyclopedia.

Wolfgang R. von Stuermer, Site Developer, Webmaster

Wolfgang brings to Patient2Patient fifteen years experience in software engineering, the development of Internet and interactive applications, and technical management. He has managed and built Internet and interactive applications for many Fortune 500 clients, having worked within a wide range of technology platforms and programming environments, ranging from robotics engineering to integrated Web application systems.

Wolfgang has held numerous positions as chief technologist, including Chief Technology Officer with Symbiant Group, and has led the development of Internet solutions at such firms as Ogilvy Interactive. He is a Professional Member of many professional societies, including the IEEE Computer Society and the Association for Computing Machinery (ACM). Wolfgang holds a Masters Degree in Computer Music, Computational Musical Theory, and Composition.

Joe Sokohl, Information Design

Joe heads the information design, usability, and technical writing consultancy Sokohl & Associates. With a background in literature and rhetoric, he has also worked in the technology field for more than ten years, helping craft understandable and usable communications. By combining his interests in human-computer interaction (HCI), page layout and design, and rhetoric, Joe helps people find meaning in the products they use.

Joe's interest in Patient2Patient is both professional and personal. As an HCI consultant with IconMedialab in Hamburg, Germany, he led a multinational usability team that worked on a major medical vendor's site. His interviews with patients, doctors and medical support staff spurred his interest in empowering individual patients with the knowledge they need.

Lori Mogol, Site Architect

As a principal of Ceteris, Inc., Lori has extensive Web experience ranging from medical publishing to technology. Her background includes Web site development and design, project management, and Internet consulting with clients including Time, Inc., Deutsche Bank, and the Civic Research Institute.

Her interest in Patient2Patient stems not only from her belief in the importance of the Internet as an information tool, but from her experience caring for critically ill family members.

ElizabethK Studio, Website Design

ElizabethK Studio is a design and development firm founded in December 2000 by Elizabeth Kilroy. The company solves information and communication problems and provides branding services across a broad range of media. Our mission is to do work we love and to work with people we enjoy.

In addition to Patient2Patient, the clientele of ElizabethK Studio includes artists, architects, product and furniture designers, a film distribution company, a business consultancy, an online audio book e-commerce site, and an art stock house.

Patient2Patient gratefully acknowledges the support and assistance of the Ben Appelbaum Foundation
www.benappelbaumfoundation.org