Web Repository of Tai Chi &Consumer Health Information

American Tai Chi Association, Herndon VA

Investigators

Abstract

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): American Tai Chi Association (ATCA) is a non-profit organization based in Herndon, VA. its missions are: 1. Promote Tai Chi as a complementary medicine to benefit the public's health in the U.S. 2. Represent and serve Tai Chi coaches nationwide. 3. Educate the public on the role and importance of Tai Chi in consumer health. This proposed project has four clear goals: 1. Provide Tai Chi coaches and Tai Chi consumers with a central online repository for consumer health information (mainly comes from PubMed and MEDLINEPlus) and knowledge about Tai Chi (from the Tai Chi and Consumer Health Library of American Tai Chi Association). 2. Motivate and train Tai Chi coaches, who currently are under-recognized and under-served healthcare professionals, to make good use of online medical resources, particularly NLM databases. 3. Offer a virtual platform for Tai Chi experts and medical professionals to conduct high-quality Telehealth together for Tai Chi consumers. 4. Use various ways to effectively promote PubMed and MEDLINEPius among Tai Chi coaches and Tai Chi consumers, in addition to direct links to PubMed and MEDLINEPius, ATCA will customize them for customers and make them interwoven into the contents of ATCA Website. This project will be an important milestone for ATCA to achieve its missions. It will enable ATCA to influence Tai Chi coaches' attitude so that they will make use of NLM databases and other online resources on a regular basis. This will keep Tai Chi coaches equipped and updated with reliable healthcare knowledge, and therefore, they will provide better health services to their customers and improve their own businesses, it will also motivate consumers to utilize scientific health resources, particularly in the subject of Tai Chi and consumer health, on the Internet to benefit their health.