Agfa HealthCare chosen to drive New Brunswick e-Health Program

Diagnostic imaging repository powered by Agfa HealthCare gives healthcare providers secure access to vital patient information, regardless of location

Toronto, Ontario – 25 March 2008 : Agfa HealthCare, a leading provider of IT-enabled clinical workflow and diagnostic imaging solutions, announces today it has been chosen as the vendor of choice by New Brunswick to deliver a Diagnostic Imaging Repository (DI-r). The agreement is a of major step forward for the province as it leaps forward with its e-Health strategy – One Patient One Record – which will provide the infrastructure and functionality required to capture, store, view and link relevant patient information for its 740,000 residents.

New Brunswick has partnered with Canada Health Infoway, which is contributing $18.2 million to the project, with the remaining $17.7 million coming from the province. The province expects to implement its One Patient One Record system during the next three years.

Working with IBM, who will provide consulting and implementation services for the project, Agfa HealthCare will create a Diagnostic Imaging Repository. This Diagnostic Imaging Repository is based on its IMPAX Data Center concept for consolidating a patient’s images and reports into a central system. The information can be retained for a patient’s lifetime, and is available in a standardized format, for the use of authorized clinicians. Doctors, nurses and technologists will have secure log-in access to relevant prior patient images, regardless of where they were acquired. Not only will the repository help clinicians make informed decisions about a patient’s care, healthcare facilities can also expect to significantly reduce costs and redundancies, such as the duplication of imaging exams due to lost paper files.

“The drive toward the implementation of the One Patient One Record system shows that New Brunswick is a true Canadian e-Health leader,” said Michael Green, President and CEO of Agfa HealthCare Canada. “Leveraging Agfa HealthCare’s interoperable technology, this province-wide repository addresses the need for integration across healthcare facilities. Not only will this provide more informed decision making, it will also enhance the delivery of patient care for the residents of New Brunswick.’’