Datex-Ohmeda Continuing Care Group Expands Respiratory Care Service With New Products, Continuing Education Courses.

Health/Medical Writers & Business Editors

TEWKSBURY, Mass.--(BW HealthWire)--May 5, 2000

As a part of its ongoing effort to support practitioners at every level, Datex-Ohmeda Continuing Care Group announces two important additions to its product portfolio and the launch of a continuing education (CE) program for respiratory care. The new offerings include the unique, new Masimo Radical(TM) Signal Extraction pulse oximeter and the Datex-Ohmeda TuffSat(TM) handheld pulse oximeter.

According to Stuart Wildhorn, Director of Sales and Marketing for Datex-Ohmeda Continuing Care, "Healthcare providers in homecare and other outside the hospital settings need innovative products and excellent customer service in order to efficiently deliver high quality patient care. These new products and CE courses address those needs and further enhance our Respiratory Care Therapy Unit."

The Continuing Care Group is a primary distributor of the Radical pulse oximeter, an easy-to-use, flexible solution for obtaining accurate measurements in the presence of patient motion and low perfusion. The Radical pulse oximeter can be used as a bedside monitor or as a handheld oximeter, making it ideal for out of the hospital settings. For in-hospital customers, Datex-Ohmeda and Ohmeda Medical are major distributors of the product.

The second new product is Datex-Ohmeda's TuffSat oximeter, an economical handheld pulse oximeter designed to give fast, accurate assessments under most clinical situations. Rugged and lightweight, the TuffSat pulse oximeter is expected to be particularly useful for transport, EMS and home care.

"Adding the Radical and TuffSat oximeters to our existing oximetry capabilities means our customers have access to a broad range of products," said Wildhorn. "We believe that customers will benefit from having a single source for their oximetry needs."

A further enhancement of its customer support is the availability of continuing education opportunities through Datex-Ohmeda Continuing Care Group. Three courses are offered now:

-- One-hour self-study course on oximetry

-- One-hour self-study course on capnography 

-- Four-hour instructor-led course on "Respiratory Monitoring in

the Home"

The self-study courses are offered without charge; there is a nominal charge for the longer course. CEUs will be awarded through Ohmeda Medical, which has extensive experience in clinical education.

Continuing Care Group is an initiative of Datex-Ohmeda, Inc., the core business of Instrumentarium Corporation (Nasdaq: INMRY; Helsinki: INSBV.HE), an international healthcare company headquartered in Finland. Instrumentarium's net worldwide sales in 1999 were $824 million. It has approximately 5,200 employees worldwide. Datex-Ohmeda's North American headquarters are located in Tewksbury, Mass. The company's web address is www.datex-ohmeda.com. Ohmeda Medical is part of Datex-Ohmeda, Inc.