A Medical Device Daily

Two of the nation's largest healthcare information networks, Quest Diagnostics (Madison, New Jersey) and Surescripts (Alexandria, Virginia), reported an agreement to pioneer the formation of an integrated service to make laboratory and prescription information broadly and easily accessible to physicians. The collaboration is designed to improve patient safety and clinical outcomes.

Quest Diagnostics tests about 150 million patients each year and has 150,000 physicians connected to its Care360 platform. Surescripts processed nearly 600 million e-prescription messages in 2009. The company supports approximately 170,000 active prescribers.

"In recent years, Surescripts and Quest Diagnostics have each committed to pioneering advancements in healthcare technology solutions," said Richard Mahoney, Quest Diagnostics' VP, Healthcare Information Solutions. "Now, we are working together to support our nation's goal to achieve a National Health Information Network, with an aim to make it possible and realistic for physicians to use technology meaningfully toward optimal and efficient patient care."

According to Harry Totonis, Surescripts' president/CEO, "Surescripts built the nation's e-prescribing network and the ecosystem to support it, based on the foundations of neutrality, efficiency and quality. This strategic alliance will leverage the strengths and experience behind our laboratory and prescription networks with an intent to form an information-rich, interoperable service that helps to lower costs and transform patient care throughout the healthcare system."

In other agreements/contracts news;

• GE Healthcare (Little Chalfont, UK) has entered into a distribution agreement for its flagship Home Health technology, GE QuietCare, with Direct Supply (Milwaukee), a provider of eldercare equipment, eCommerce and service solutions to senior living facilities. Direct Supply will distribute and co-market GE QuietCare across the U.S.

GE QuietCare is a remote passive activity and behavioral monitoring system for seniors, using wireless sensors to non-intrusively track the daily patterns of seniors' activities. GE QuietCare alerts caregivers to behavioral changes that may signal potential health issues or emergency situations such as an increase in bathroom visits or a possible fall. It is used primarily in assisted living facilities to enhance levels of care and to help the elderly retain their independence.

• Positron (Indianapolis) a molecular imaging solutions company focused on nuclear cardiology, reported the sale of its Attrius PET scanner to Ochsner Health System (New Orleans).

The Attrius is a PET scanner optimized for myocardial perfusion imaging with several specialized features making it the scanner of choice for nuclear cardiologist's who value high quality PET imaging and cardiovascular specific interpretation tools.

• Covidien (Boulder, Colorado) has entered into a long-term, preferred vendor partnership with the Order of Saint Francis (OSF) Healthcare System (Peoria, Illinois). After using a mix of SPO2 technologies for more than eight years, the OSF Healthcare System recently standardized to OxiMax technology for all its pulse oximetry needs.

The Nellcor OxiMax pulse oximetry products from Covidien provide monitoring of patient oxygen levels and are used at medical facilities worldwide.

The Order of Saint Francis Healthcare system includes seven acute care and two long-term care facilities in Illinois and Michigan, and serves more than 2.5 million patients each year.