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Royal Philips Electronics has agreed to acquire US-based clinical IT firm Visicu for around €290m, to expand its patient monitoring business.
Visicu provides clinical IT systems for use in acute hospitals, such as the eICU software that enables 24/7 patient monitoring in intensive care units (ICUs).
The system can track ICU patients at different hospitals and provide continuous monitoring of patient vitals signs, medications, labs and early-warning alarms known as ‘Smart Alerts’. Alerts are triggered by deviations in a patient’s vital signs based on their admitting or current diagnosis.
Philips say that by integrating Visicu’s remote patient monitoring and clinical decision support technology with Philips’ patient monitors, it will be possible to provide more effective clinical decision support to hospital staff, while allowing them to monitor greater numbers of critically ill patients.
Steve Rusckowski, chief executive at Philips Healthcare, said: “By investing in clinical IT solutions like those offered by Visicu and Emergin, we believe we can offer customers more attractive patient monitoring solutions that improve hospital productivity as well as patient outcomes. So making these investments we believe will drive further growth in our patient monitoring business.”
The deal is expected to be closed in the first quarter of 2008.
Frank Sample, chairman and chief executive at Visicu said: “We’re excited to be teaming up with Philips – a global leader in patient monitoring – as it will give us the opportunity to build on Philips’ extensive market presence to grow beyond our current focus on the ICU and US market.”
The deal is Philip’s second major healthcare IT deal within a month. In December 2007, Philips announced its plans to acquire US-based Emergin, which provides software used to transmit medical alarm signals throughout hospitals.
The acquisitions will help to boost the company profile as the business prepares to split into three divisions – consumer electronics, lighting and medical products.
Ruscowski says he intends to make all businesses under Phillips Healthcare “truly international brands which can migrate its technologies into any department in any hospital.
We believe that these investments will drive further growth in our patient monitoring business, given that burgeoning demands on hospitals will increasingly drive the need for effective IT solutions that ensure increased patient safety.”
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Joe Fernandez