McKesson Sees Strong Momentum in Medical Imaging Solutions

New Customers Signed, Ease of Installation Demonstrates Strength of Market-Leading PACS

Amid governmental calls for increased use of information technology to improve the quality and safety of healthcare, McKesson announced that it has signed a record 28 new customers for its medical imaging solutions since January. The company also completed 15 installations in the same time period, demonstrating the strength of the solution and the ease of implementation. During McKesson's last fiscal year, which ended March 31, the number of exams read using Horizon Medical Imaging(TM) picture archiving and communication system (PACS) increased approximately 40 percent.

"We have seen tremendous growth over the past year for our Horizon Medical Imaging PACS," said Roderick O'Reilly, vice president and general manager of McKesson's Medical Imaging Group. "Customers recognize that our systems can provide an immediate benefit in terms of improved workflow efficiency and patient care. And we're continually investing in innovative PACS technology such as our Horizon Rad Station(TM) workstation platform, which handles multi-slice image sets, diverse modalities, and specialized viewing and analysis applications."

Horizon Medical Imaging combines PACS functionality with seamless "anytime, anywhere" access to images and patient information. The solution streamlines processes, helps reduce overhead costs and enhances communication with referring physicians, leading to better, safer patient care.

One of the largest sites to implement Horizon Medical Imaging was 650-bed regional referral center North Mississippi Medical Center, in Tupelo, Miss. It is the largest hospital in Mississippi and the largest non-metropolitan hospital in America. The medical center serves more than 650,000 people in 22 counties in north Mississippi, northwest Alabama and portions of Tennessee. Its eight radiology locations on the main campus and five other sites at affiliate hospitals handle 250,000 exams annually.

"We selected McKesson's Horizon Medical Imaging to help us improve quality and efficiency at our facility, which is spread out over a large geographic area," said Tommy Bozeman, vice president and chief information officer for North Mississippi Medical Center. "McKesson's PACS enables us to incorporate medical imaging into our electronic patient record, making information readily available to clinicians for faster, more informed decision making -- and ultimately, higher quality of care."

Bozeman added that the installation process went very smoothly. "McKesson understood our needs and delivered on all of its promises," he said. "The implementation was excellent, and our radiologists and referring physicians have embraced the new technology. We've already seen a 50 percent decrease in turnaround from the time the exam is complete until the radiologist interprets the results."

In addition to strong sales momentum, customer satisfaction with Horizon Medical Imaging has been consistently high, with KLAS scores among the top three in its category for service and installation over the past four years. The high marks are due in part to McKesson's world-class support organization, which provides personalized customer support and complete installations within approximately 90 days of contract signing.

Jordan Hospital, a 139-bed, not-for-profit community hospital in Plymouth, Mass., that performs 120,000 radiology exams per year, recently experienced McKesson's commitment to the customer experience firsthand during a system go-live. "The McKesson team was phenomenal," said Jim Murray, PACS project manager. "They helped us with training whenever and wherever we needed them. Our IT department was impressed with the ease of installation -- it lived up to what we heard during the selection process. Our radiologists agree that McKesson is the best PACS product because of the flexibility to customize the workstation for each user. And senior management is pleased that McKesson's vision supports our goals of expanding the PACS to other departments such as cardiology and endoscopy."

With more than 16 years' experience with rapidly evolving RIS/PACS technology and systems installed in nearly 500 medical facilities of all types, McKesson's applications offer better clinical utility and faster integration of off-the-shelf technology. Coupled with its 30 years of healthcare IT experience delivering solutions such as its market-leading physician portal for secure Internet-based information access, McKesson is uniquely positioned to deliver an integrated RIS/PACS solution. McKesson's solution includes reporting and scheduling with anytime, anywhere access to the complete patient record.

For more information or to see a demonstration of Horizon Medical Imaging and other components of its integrated RIS/PACS, visit McKesson's Booth #303 during the SCAR 2005 Annual Meeting, June 2-5 in Orlando.

About McKesson

McKesson Corporation is a Fortune 15 healthcare services and information technology company dedicated to helping its customers deliver high-quality healthcare by reducing costs, streamlining processes, and improving the quality and safety of patient care. Over the course of its 170-year history, McKesson has grown by providing pharmaceutical and medical-surgical supply management across the spectrum of care; healthcare information technology for hospitals, physicians, homecare, and payors; hospital and retail pharmacy automation; and services for manufacturers and payors designed to improve outcomes for patients. For more information: www.mckesson.com

Distributed by Market Wire