Bio-IT World Announces the 2009 Best Practices Awards Program


NEEDHAM, MA--(Marketwire - October 8, 2008) - Following a momentous 2008 program, Bio-IT World is pleased to announce its prestigious Best Practices Awards program for 2009.

Receiving 56 entries and awarding 15 prizes in 2008, Bio-IT World's Best Practices Awards recognizes industry, government and academic groups for their novel and innovative uses of all forms of technology to improve the efficiency and economics of basic research, drug development, and clinical trials.

Starting on October 8, 2008, Bio-IT World will be accepting entries for the 2009 competition. The deadline is mid-January 2009. Full details of the entry process and the entry form are available by clicking here: www.bio-itworld.com.

Entries are being invited in nine categories:

--  Basic Research & Biological Research (disease pathway research,
    applied & basic research)
--  Drug Discovery & Development (compound-focused research, drug safety)
--  Clinical Trials & Research (trial design, eCTD)
--  Translational Medicine (feedback loops, predictive technologies)
--  Personalized Medicine (responders/non-responders, biomarkers)
--  IT & Informatics (LIMS, storage, data visualization, imaging
    technologies, high performance computing)
--  Knowledge Management (data mining, idea/expertise mining, text mining,
    collaboration, resource optimization)
--  Health-IT (ePrescribing, RHIOs, EMR/PHR)
--  Manufacturing & Bioprocessing (mass production, continuous
    manufacturing)
    

All of the entries will be thoroughly and objectively reviewed and ranked by a panel of experts assembled by Bio-IT World editors. The winners will be announced and presented with their awards at a gala dinner ceremony held in Boston in April 2009 (in conjunction with the Bio-IT World Conference & Expo), and the winners and other entries will be the subject of dedicated coverage in Bio-IT World print and online.

"Following the gratifying success of the 2008 Best Practices competition, we are pleased to announce the kick-off of the 2009 contest," says Kevin Davies, Bio-IT World editor-in-chief. "We are seeking to identify and showcase outstanding examples of innovative partnerships, technologies and strategies impacting research and drug development, and the peer review aspect of this competition sets it apart from many other industry award programs."

Past winners of Bio-IT World's Best Practices Awards include teams from: Applied Biosystems, GlaxoSmithKline, IO Informatics, AstraZeneca, the National Cancer Institute, Genstruct, Sirtris Pharmaceuticals, H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center, Merck, and Lincoln Technologies.

Links to Bio-IT World's coverage of past awards programs and events, can be found by clicking here: www.bio-itworld.com.

About Bio-IT World

Bio-IT World (www.bio-itworld.com), the flagship publication of Cambridge Healthtech Institute (CHI), is the leading source of news on technology and strategic innovation in drug discovery, development, and clinical trials. Bio-IT World explores the tools and results of predictive biology as the industry adapts to the new world of personalized medicine. Bio-IT World has won 34 national and regional awards, more than any other magazine covering the life sciences industry. CHI offers a suite of published resources through a new division -- Cambridge Healthtech Media Group -- that includes Bio-IT World magazine, numerous topic-specific eNewsletters, white papers, webcasts, podcasts, conferences, and the Bio-IT World Best Practices Awards. The magazine is based in Needham, MA.

About Cambridge Healthtech Institute

Founded in 1992, Cambridge Healthtech Institute (www.chicorporate.com) is the industry leader offering the preeminent source of information to the leading researchers and business experts from top pharmaceutical, biotech, and academic organizations. Delivering an assortment of resources such as events, reports, publications, and eNewsletters, CHI's portfolio of products includes Cambridge Healthtech Institute Events, Pharmaceutical Strategy Series, Barnett International, Insight Pharma Reports, Marketing Services, and Cambridge Healthtech Media Group.

Contact Information: Contact: Kevin Davies Editor-in-Chief, Bio-IT World 781-972-1341