Carestream Health, a medical imaging technology company, will sell its healthcare information systems (HCIS) business to Philips.
Financial details of the agreement were not disclosed. The companies hope to close the sale during the second half of 2019 and will operate independently until the deal closes.
The Rochester, New York-based company’s HCIS business offers imaging IT tools to hospitals, imaging centers, radiology services providers and specialty medical clinics.
Meanwhile, Carestream’s medical imaging, dental and industrial films, non-destructive testing and precision coating businesses are not impacted by the acquisition.
Through the deal, Philips broadens its healthcare IT business. It will now feature Carestream’s enterprise imaging platform, which includes a vendor neutral archive, a workflow orchestrator, diagnostic and enterprise viewers, multimedia reporting and clinical, operational and business analytics tools.
“By becoming part of Philips, the HCIS business will have a greater opportunity to thrive and grow,” Ludovic d’Aprea, Carestream’s general manager for healthcare information solutions, said in a news release. “Both organizations share a commitment to meaningful innovation which is deeply embedded in each company’s culture. Customers will have access to a broader portfolio of healthcare IT solutions to simplify medical image management, enable effective collaboration and enhance patient care.”
A Deep-dive Into Specialty Pharma
A specialty drug is a class of prescription medications used to treat complex, chronic or rare medical conditions. Although this classification was originally intended to define the treatment of rare, also termed “orphan” diseases, affecting fewer than 200,000 people in the US, more recently, specialty drugs have emerged as the cornerstone of treatment for chronic and complex diseases such as cancer, autoimmune conditions, diabetes, hepatitis C, and HIV/AIDS.
In a statement, Robert Cascella, Royal Philips’ chief business leader of precision diagnosis, added: “The combination of our successful innovations in imaging system platforms, workflow optimization and artificial intelligence-enabled informatics, combined with Carestream’s cloud-based enterprise imaging informatics platform and complementary geographic footprint will provide a solid foundation to deliver on the promise of precision diagnosis.”
In other IT news from Philips, NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital recently announced plans to expand its virtual care capabilities with remote monitoring services from the Dutch company.
The hospital’s affiliated doctors at Weill Cornell Medicine will utilize the Philips eCareCoordinator and eCareCompanion solutions. Additionally, its affiliated physicians at Columbia University Irving Medical Center anticipate using the tools.
Photo: AndreyPopov, Getty Images
