News ReleaseFor Immediate Release |
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Investor Contact:
Julie Pekarek
Chief Marketing Officer
414.977.4254
ir@merge.com
MERGE HEALTHCARE TO PRESENT AT CBI’s 5th ANNUAL FORUM ON PATIENT REPORTED OUTCOMES (PRO)
Milwaukee, WI, November 16, 2009 – Merge Healthcare (NASDAQ: MRGE), a leading health IT solutions provider, will moderate a discussion of patient recall periods in clinical trials at the Center for Business Intelligence’s (CBI’s) 5th Annual Forum on PRO in Philadelphia, November 17-18th. Additionally, Merge is a sponsor of the conference and will introduce three new devices based on the recently released etrials eDiary 5.0™ software. This advanced technology has already been selected to support a major global trial that covers 18 countries, 30+ languages and dialects, and over 160 sites.
“As a proud contributor to, corporate sponsor of and an important member of the conference program, Merge continues its mission of thought leadership, strategic interaction and innovation for clinical research,” says Jon DeVries, President of Merge eClinical (a wholly owned subsidiary of Merge Healthcare). “This year’s conference features in-depth discussions not only on data collection and analysis, but also on methodology to generate reliable and meaningful outcomes data - the goal of any clinical trial. We look forward to adding to this critical dialogue.”
Christine Lys, M.S., Merge eClinical’s Director of Business Development, will lead a panel discussion on “Patient Recall Period – Is Shorter Better?” on Wednesday, November 18, 2009 from 9:15 a.m. – 10:15 a.m. This panel takes on the heavily debated, complex and important topic of patient recall periods in clinical outcomes research. Technology must provide broad options for enabling a patient’s recall of symptoms, as well as for correlating patient outcomes with other clinical and biomarker data collected for robust data interpretation. With her experience in using these technologies through the etrials™ solutions, Ms. Lys is well equipped to address appropriate implementation of Patient Intelligence Technologies to maximize accurate subjective data collection.
Merge will also be exhibiting its latest eClinical capabilities, including its new all-access Web portal, the recently launched eDiary 5.0 software and three new Windows-based devices, and upgrades to etrials EDC™. etrials EDC forms the backbone of data collection within a clinical trial, and Merge has focused resources on upgrading features that generate time and cost savings for clinical trial managers.
“I’m very proud of the quality focus we have engaged in getting these new releases to the market,” says DeVries. “Customers and prospects who have been watching the transition of etrials to Merge eClinical can be reassured that our business has and will continue to invest in the well-established etrials product portfolio. These new upgrades are the result of customer-driven enhancements that will save time and money in clinical trials, and we look forward to showcasing them at the PRO conference.”
Merge Healthcare Incorporated develops solutions that automate healthcare data and diagnostic workflow to enable a better electronic record of the patient experience, and to enhance product development for health IT, device and pharmaceutical companies. Merge products, ranging from standards-based development toolkits to sophisticated clinical applications, have been used by healthcare providers, vendors and researchers worldwide for over 20 years. Additional information can be found at www.merge.com.
The matters discussed in this news release may include forward-looking statements, which could involve a number of risks and uncertainties. When used in this press release, the words “will”, “believes”, “intends”, “anticipates”, “expects” and similar expressions, are intended to identify forward-looking statements. Actual results could differ materially from those expressed in, or implied by, such forward-looking statements. Except as expressly required by the federal securities laws, the Company undertakes no obligation to update such factors or to publicly announce the results of any of the forward-looking statements.