DAOU wins $597,000 contract to upgrade computer network at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital.

SAN DIEGO--(BW HealthWire)--March 25, 1997--DAOU Systems Inc. has been awarded a $597,000 contract to upgrade and install a state-of-the-art computer network at the prestigious St. Jude Children's Research Hospital in Memphis, Tenn.

Under the terms of the contract, DAOU is assisting St. Jude Hospital with the migration from their current shared-media network to a fiber digital data interchange (FDDI) backbone. The FDDI technology will enable St. Jude Hospital to increase the bandwidth capacity of their network to accommodate the transmission of medical images and information throughout the organization.

In addition to the network upgrade, DAOU is also installing three multi-processor Compaq servers for the Windows NT platform, which will enable St. Jude Hospital to migrate from their current Banyon Vines computing environment.

"DAOU has provided solid leadership, project management and technical expertise," said Galen Briggs, vice president and chief information officer at St. Jude Hospital. "This new phase of our strategic network plan positions us well for the future, where we see a demand for greater bandwidth. The network will support the installation of new clinical systems, as well as research databases throughout the organization."

Briggs stated that the new network infrastructure is critical to the organization's clinical and research objectives. "In research, the focus is on sharing and collaboration, as well as access to information, research and clinical trial data both within and outside the organization. The transmission of this information is vital to our research initiatives and increasingly critical to our long-term success."

Of the project, Bob McNeill, DAOU's executive vice president and chief operating officer, said: "The team at DAOU is proud to be associated with such a renown organization as St. Jude Hospital. Our mission is to use information technology to improve the quality of health care. We're pleased to put that technology to work in helping St. Jude Hospital achieve its mission, which is to pursue the research, treatment and cure of childhood diseases."

St. Jude Hospital is one of the world's premier centers for research and treatment of catastrophic diseases in children, primarily pediatric cancers. The facility has more than 1,600 employees, accommodates 35,000 hospital visits per year, and has treated children from across the United States and 57 countries. St. Jude Hospital was founded in 1962 by entertainer Danny Thomas and is supported primarily by funds from volunteer contributions.

Founded in 1987, DAOU Systems designs, implements, supports and manages computer networks for the health care industry. The company also offers Internet and network monitoring solutions. DAOU has provided network services to more than 350 hospitals and health care facilities nationwide. With headquarters in San Diego, the company has five regional offices and 140 employees.

In addition to St. Jude Hospital, DAOU's clients include such organizations as Atlantic Health System, ScrippsHealth, Palomar-Pomerado Health System and Catholic Medical Center of Brooklyn and Queens.

CONTACT: DAOU Systems Inc., San Diego

Craig K. Collins, 619/646-2857

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