A Medical Device Daily

AMCI Corporation (Gyrus ACMI; Southborough, Massachusetts), the Urology & Gynecology division and subsidiary of Gyrus Group (Cardiff, UK) and a manufacturer of diagnostic and therapeutic minimally invasive surgical devices used in urology and gynecology, has entered into a partnership with Conceptus (San Carlos, California), manufacturer of the Essure Permanent Birth Control system. Conceptus said that its representatives will use Gyrus ACMI SlimLine Hysteroscopes to provide visualization and access during physician evaluations of the Essure product in their offices.

The SlimLine Hysteroscope provides visualization of the uterus and fallopian tubes throughout the procedure. Once in place, the Essure device is designed to elicit tissue growth in and around the micro-insert to form an occlusion or blockage in the fallopian tube.

“This is a perfect time for the partnership of Gyrus ACMI and Conceptus,” said Andy Zappas, president/CEO, Urology & Gynecology division, Gyrus. “With insurance reimbursement trends moving positively in the direction of office-based procedures, we recognize the important role that new technologies can play in enabling the gynecologist to easily move procedures from the hospital to the office while continuing to provide a high level of patient care and safety.”

In other agreements:

• Physicians Healthcare Management Group (Phyhealth; Miami) reported entering into a licensing and distribution agreement with My Medical CD (New York) for its My Medical's inPersonal Health Record technology.

Phyhealth said it will provide My Medical CD to its Phyhealth Plan members in the form of a member ID card and make My Medical CD available to Phyhealth's physician partners and their patients.

The specific terms of the agreement were not released, but Phyhealth said it will have access to My Medical CD at discounted pricing and will have its own private label version of the CDs.

Robert Trinka, Phyhealth CEO, said, “Phyhealth's focus is on the physician/patient relationship, and an important element of that relationship is for the patient to have their personal medical information under their control and available to any provider at any time, anywhere. Both patients and physicians benefit from the ability to immediately access key information, and many medical injuries can be prevented just by having the patient's history available in the event of an emergency.”

Jim Hogan, CEO of My Medical, said, “My Medical CD is a Personal Health Record that can be viewed on a CD the patient carries or from any computer at any location with Internet access. Our development team has put together a unique personal health record technology that combines total portability with the effective security measures necessary to protect confidentiality.”

Personal Health Records (PHRs) are differentiated from the electronic medical record (EMRs) initiatives being sponsored by the federal government, major provider organizations, and insurers.

Phyhealth operates integrated healthcare organizations in partnership with physicians.