Medsphere & Keane Join Forces to Provide Healthcare Enterprises with Integrated Electronic Health Record & Revenue Cycle Management Systems.

Total Solution Provides Best-of-Suite Technology, Streamlines Implementations

SAN RAMON & ALISO VIEJO, Calif. -- Medsphere Systems Corporation and Keane, Inc. today announced a strategic partnership designed to provide hospitals and other healthcare enterprises with integrated best-of-suite clinical and financial software. The alliance leverages Medsphere's OpenVista[R] electronic health record (EHR) platform, the leading commercial implementation of the VistA EHR developed by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, and Keane's EZ-Access Patcom[R], the leading revenue cycle management solution for hospital environments.

The partnership grew out of joint deployment efforts at hospitals operated by the West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources (DHHR) and at Century City Doctor's Hospital (CCDH) in Los Angeles, both of which required integration and concurrent installation of Medsphere and Keane technologies. The integration at West Virginia DHHR was completed successfully and is live at three sites: 150-bed and 90-bed acute care psychiatric facilities, and a 119-bed acute and long term-care facility. The CCDH integration and implementation is in progress with an expected Go-Live in mid-December.

Building on these projects, the companies have now formed a relationship designed to equip care delivery organizations with a combined best-of-suite clinical and financial product offering backed by a unified implementation methodology. This strategy simplifies technology procurements for hospitals and other facilities, helps ensure successful deployments, and provides accountability.

"Hospitals and other healthcare enterprises are frequently unable to reach consensus over new clinical and financial management technologies because they are unable to get a best-in-suite solution in a single product suite and they are reluctant to deal with different vendors to get the best technology in each area," said Walter Kaczor, senior vice president of Keane's Healthcare Solutions Division. "Our partnership with Medsphere eliminates the need to compromise while also ensuring vendor cooperation."

"Our joint implementation with Keane in West Virginia proved the effectiveness of our collaborative delivery and support model in providing a total solution for revenue cycle, financial and clinical needs. It also allowed us to develop a proven integration method that can be replicated in other deployments," said Denean Rivera, Senior Vice President of Client Services and Strategic Partnerships at Medsphere. "Other organizations will now be able to reap the same benefits."

Medsphere's OpenVista is a commercial open source version of the VA's VistA EHR enhanced to meet the needs of non-VA healthcare providers and sold as a package that includes professional services, training, ongoing product upgrades, and 24x7 customer support. Use of the core VistA functionality, available in the public domain, offers an affordable EHR solution without expensive proprietary license fees while also delivering a platform with a twenty-year track record that has been heralded for its role in turning the VA into a leader in quality care.

Keane's EZ-Access Patcom revenue cycle management (RCM) suite incorporates patient access, patient billing, accounts receivable, collections, contract management and additional RCM modules designed to help hospitals of all sizes increase revenue and cash flow, decrease days outstanding for accounts receivable, and improve revenue cycle management. Leveraging Web technology, EZ-Access Patcom enhances the revenue cycle process with advanced functionality including online scheduling, insurance eligibility, and medical necessity checking. The system's workflow engine manages each account's lifecycle from start to finish, streamlining operations and accelerating the collection process.

The partnership is effective immediately.

About Medsphere Systems Corporation

As the Open Source source for healthcare, Medsphere is revolutionizing the industry by delivering commercially supported software based on the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs' proven VistA electronic health record (EHR). Medsphere offers healthcare a comprehensive solution in OpenVista[R], a portfolio of products and professional services for hospitals, clinics, and integrated delivery networks. The company addresses the capital constraints of the healthcare industry through an innovative subscription-based pricing model. Medsphere's experienced team of healthcare technology professionals and unique suite of implementation tools deliver a fluid transition to a comprehensive healthcare information technology solution. Founded in 2002, Medsphere is backed financially by Azure Capital Partners, Thomas Weisel Venture Partners, and the Wasatch Venture Fund. For more information, visit http://www.medsphere.com.

About Keane

In business since 1965 and based in the United States, Keane is a global services firm that specializes in enabling transformation of its clients' business and IT functions. The transformation partner of choice for clients across a broad array of industries, Keane is unique in its passion for building satisfying and enduring relationships with clients. Keane's solutions--which comprise consulting, technology, and outsourcing services--are customized to address clients' industry-specific challenges and enable dramatic improvements in business performance. For more information on Keane's services portfolio, industry solutions, and global locations, visit www.keane.com.