Newly Enhanced Relationship Between Mission Health and Cerner to Boost Healthcare Innovation

New Relationship Also Brings Additional Well-Paying Jobs to Buncombe County


ASHEVILLE, N.C., June 24, 2014 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- To provide for the safest, highest quality, lowest cost patient care and to support the transition to population health, Mission Health and international healthcare information technology provider Cerner Corporation, have entered into a 10-year agreement to support caregivers and patients with a broad range of information technology tools.

The new agreement also builds enhanced bridges between senior Cerner and Mission executives who will meet quarterly to review progress, ensure alignment and identify areas of new opportunity and industry-wide innovation. Mission Health and Cerner have been IT partners for nearly 15 years but the new agreement, which was signed on March 28, will help Mission manage IT costs, align strategies and enhance the quality of care.

"This agreement is not merely a business relationship but rather a collaborative partnership to create new ways of caring for patients," said Ronald A. Paulus, MD, President and CEO, Mission Health. "This partnership will help Mission lead the healthcare industry and set the standard for effective and efficient information technology solutions. Information technology tools that are nimble, scalable and cost-effective are essential to patient-centered care.  Creating an executive council comprised of both Mission and Cerner executives and clinicians will position us to lead care innovation models and technology solutions well into the future."

Mission Health has more than 10,600 employees, six member hospitals and numerous outpatient facilities spread across 18 counties in western North Carolina. To support the Mission relationship Cerner is making an investment in Buncombe County by bringing 11 Cerner associates to work on-site, alongside Mission staff, and live full-time in Asheville, North Carolina.  The Cerner team will be led by an experienced Cerner executive, and drive a well-defined set of outcomes.  Additional Cerner associates may be added to supplement Mission's IT department as the decade-long agreement unfolds.

"Mission Health has been a long-standing, collaborative and important Cerner client," said Neal Patterson, Cerner Chairman and CEO. "Mission Health and Cerner both recognize the critical role information technology plays in transforming the healthcare industry, and in helping individual organizations achieve their strategic goals. Our enhanced agreement will reinforce Mission's position as one of the nation's Top 15 Health Systems, and as an organization setting a new standard for patient-centered healthcare innovation. It also will help Cerner identify opportunities for new solutions applicable to the broader industry."

About Mission Health

Mission Health, based in Asheville, North Carolina, is the state's sixth-largest health system and the region's only not-for-profit, independent community hospital system governed and managed exclusively in western North Carolina. Mission Health has been recognized as one of the nation's Top 15 Health Systems 2012-2014 by Truven Health Analytics, formerly Thomson Reuters. Mission Health is the only medium-sized health system to receive this recognition three years in a row, and the only health system in North Carolina to achieve that distinction.

Mission Health, which traces its roots in the region back to 1885, operates six hospitals, numerous outpatient and surgery centers, post-acute care provider CarePartners, and the region's only dedicated Level II trauma center. Its medical staff consists of more than 1,000 physicians and is certified in more than 50 medical specialties and sub-specialties. Mission Health has seven Centers of Excellence: Cancer, Heart, Mission Children's Hospital, Neurosciences, Orthopedics, Trauma and Women's Health. Mission Hospital, located in Asheville, is the system's flagship hospital and is licensed for 795 beds. It is the regional referral center for tertiary and quaternary care. It also includes Mission Children's Hospital – the region's only children's hospital. Other Mission Health member hospitals include Angel Medical Center in Franklin, Blue Ridge Regional Hospital in Spruce Pine, Highlands-Cashiers Hospital in Highlands, McDowell Hospital in Marion and Transylvania Regional Hospital in Brevard. With approximately 10,600 employees and 2,000 volunteers, Mission Health is dedicated to improving the health and wellness of the people of western North Carolina. For more information, please visit mission-health.org or @MissionHealthNC.



            

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