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The IPA Association of America Selects Purkinje's CareSeries As a Recommended System for Integrated EHR and Practice Management

Posted on: Tuesday, 13 March 2007, 12:01 CDT

Purkinje, a leading service and software partner of physicians, today announced that The IPA Association of America (TIPAAA) has chosen CareSeries as a recommended system for integrated EHR and practice management. TIPAAA's 900 Independent/Integrated Physician Association (IPA) members are encouraged to select Purkinje's new Web-based suite of applications that facilitate clinical and administrative workflow within medical practices, on behalf of their 300,000 affiliated physicians.

Tailored for small and medium-sized physician practices, CareSeries provides evidence-driven decision support at the point of care to improve patient outcomes, lower costs and capture new revenue for physicians. CareSeries includes electronic health record (EHR), enterprise practice management (EPM) and billing, e-prescribing and personal health record (PHR) application modules.

As IPAs are reshaping the landscape of regional medicine, they must continually look at new and innovative ways to strengthen their market presence and their relationship with existing members. "One of TIPAAA's primary roles has been to identify new ways IPAs can deliver value added services to their membership. Process improvement and information technology are two fertile areas," said Al Holloway, CEO of TIPAAA. "Clinical integration -- the ability to securely share patient information across the continuum of care -- will soon be on the forefront. The clinical system will provide a comprehensive view of current medical history, diagnoses, orders, medications, tests and lab results. We've determined that Purkinje's CareSeries can provide this single view."

TIPAAA leadership went through a careful selection process. It evaluated vendors on several criteria. TIPAAA insisted that applications be "best-in-class", easy to use so clinicians could learn them quickly, and positively impact care. The applications also had to have a demonstrable financial impact. It was also critical that the vendor's service model be compatible with TIPAAA's vision for an IPA playing a major role in implementation.

"CareSeries was a clear leader in all areas," added Holloway. "For example, it has the only electronic prescribing system that has been shown in studies to lower outpatient medication costs. CareSeries also scored highly in independent EHR assessments and in our due diligence. Purkinje is the only vendor that has a business model that successfully positions IPAs to implement and train users as well as support its EHR and practice management system. They had the right mindset about empowering IPAs from the start. That caught our attention."

Purkinje is committed to supporting TIPAAA's vision of IPAs becoming regional centers of EHR and practice management excellence. The company's Professional Service Partner (PSP) program offers full training and certification for IPAs' clinical support and IT teams. The PSP program enables IPA teams to become experts in implementing and supporting CareSeries. This is a compelling value-added service that IPAs can offer their practices and further fortifies the relationship with their physician members.

"TIPAAA's selection of Purkinje as a preferred vendor enables IPAs to add significant value as they take the lead in building and supporting local market health information communities," said Bryan Dieter, CEO of Purkinje. "We are confident that CareSeries will make a significant difference to IPAs, making it possible for them to maintain long-term sustainable partnerships with small practices in a cost-effective way."

About TIPAAA

The IPA Association of America (TIPAAA) is the leading trade association serving Independent/Integrated Physician Associations (IPAs). Founded in 1994 in Oakland, California, TIPAAA provides a wide range of products, services, and educational programs designed to help IPAs operate effectively and successfully in managed care. The association has nearly 900 organization members, chapters in 39 states (with more in development), and represents more than 300,000 U.S. physicians affiliated with IPAs.

About Purkinje

Purkinje partners with physicians to help them save time, maximize income, and provide optimal care to their patients. The company offers a unified suite of solutions in the areas of practice management, electronic health records, personal health records, and electronic prescribing which incorporate innovative decision support and workflow enhancing tools. Additionally, Purkinje provides a series of professional services to physician practices that further maximize efficiency, cost savings, and income including billing services, transcription, and medication fulfillment. Named in honor of renown Czech physiologist Jan Evangelista Purkinje, the company's solutions are relied upon by more than 5,000 physicians in medical groups, community health centers and hospitals. Purkinje has over 350 employees and is based in St. Louis, Mo. For more information, please visit www.purkinje.com.

Source: Business Wire

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