TheraDoc Upgrades Infection Control Assistant to Provide Unmatched Surveillance and Enhanced Infection Management.

Business Editors/Health/Medical Writers/High-Tech Writers

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SALT LAKE CITY--(BUSINESS WIRE)--April 15, 2004

Improved Infection Control Tools Allow Hospitals to Implement

a Well-Designed Strategy to Prevent, Control and Treat Infections

TheraDoc Inc.(R) has enhanced its Web-based Infection Control Assistant (ICA) with several new, valuable infection control tools. The ICA is currently valued by Infection Control Professionals (ICPs) for its ability to conduct automated institution-wide surveillance and "push" historical and emerging actionable patient information to them in real time. The improved software offers enhanced reporting and alerting capabilities. Further, it enables comparison of infection rates with nationally accumulated NNIS data and allows ICPs to better monitor and track escalating patient care. An NCCLS M39 standards compliant antibiogram is now also provided.

The Infection Control Assistant's upgraded features allow ICPs to aggressively address the prevention of infectious outbreaks, nosocomial infections and antibiotic resistance, critical issues identified as top priorities by JCAHO, the CDC and state health departments. The software's new functionality further supports healthcare organizations and ICPs in the frontline struggle to identify, quantify, and control community-acquired, healthcare-associated and nosocomial (hospital-acquired) infections.

The following new functionalities enhance the already comprehensive capabilities of TheraDoc's Infection Control Assistant:

Enhanced Reporting

-- Allows ICPs to create baselines for specific infection rates

in the hospital (e.g. central line bacteremias and ventilator

associated pneumonia) and compare those rates against the

corresponding published NNIS data.

-- Monitors and tracks infection rates and provides critical

infection management reports that ICPs can use to reduce

infections, improve patient safety and support hospital

infection control initiatives.

-- Flexible reporting that provides convenient viewing of

infection control data by source, location or equipment. This

capability creates an environment where ICPs can easily

navigate and accomplish all infection management, patient

surveillance and intervention activities.

Improved Alerting

-- Flag alerts highlight MRSA and VRE patients for current

management and for readmission. The ICA's ability to identify

these patients and alert ICPs that they are being re-admitted

provides an opportunity for proactive intervention, avoiding

the introduction of resistant organisms into the hospital

population.

-- Nosocomial infection related death alerts provide prompt

review of causality and reduce the time and effort it takes

for an ICP to identify the incident, gather information to

make a determination and report it to the appropriate

governing body.

Location Model

-- TheraDoc's superior location model tracks the escalation of

patient care and alerts ICPS to the fact that the need for

care is escalating. This capability further facilitates

comparisons with published NNIS data and saves valuable time

for ICPs.

Enhanced Antibiogram

-- TheraDoc's online antibiogram is now NCCLS M39 compliant,

meeting the College of Pathologists recommendations and

facilitating adherence to a national standard for therapeutic

recommendations. The ICA expands upon this standard by

providing ICPs with the option of viewing the most resistant

isolate as well as the first resistant isolate.

TheraDoc worked closely with ICPs to understand their environment, needs and workflow. The results of this unique collaboration are reflected in the Infection Control Assistant's design, capabilities and ease of use; all of which enable healthcare providers to achieve outstanding clinical and financial outcomes. The ICA is integrated with TheraDoc's Antibiotic Assistant and Public Health Surveillance Assistant.

To learn more about TheraDoc's Infection Control Assistant and other knowledge solutions, visit TheraDoc's Web site at www.TheraDoc.com.

About TheraDoc

TheraDoc is a medical informatics company specializing in therapeutic, real-time decision support that improves the quality, safety, and efficiency of patient care in large and small healthcare organizations. Integrated with disparate information systems or electronic medical records, TheraDoc's technology helps clinicians manage multiple processes of care across multiple conditions and diseases.

Founded in 1999, TheraDoc designs, develops, and supports a suite of clinical decision support technologies. TheraDoc's founders and core medical informatics team are internationally recognized for their pioneering work in medical expert systems. Their experience in clinical decision support design and development spans two decades. On the Net: TheraDoc's site: http://www.TheraDoc.com.