Mountain View, CA, May 4, 2005
IMPAC Medical Systems,
Inc., part of the Elekta Group and a leading provider of
information technology solutions for pathology and oncology,
today announced a software licensing agreement
with Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) that will allow for
the inclusion of enhanced barcoding functionality in IMPAC’s
PowerPath® anatomic pathology system.
Under the terms of the agreement, IMPAC will incorporate
barcoding technology developed at MGH into PowerPath for
specimen tracking and plans to offer it as a separate module.
Barcoding helps expedite the case tracking and specimen location
throughout each phase of the diagnostic process by providing
special tracking codes for each specimen. During each phase of
the process, staff can identify specimens by barcode and track
the location in the information system, helping to significantly
reduce the number of lost or misplaced cases.
As Ulysses J. Balis, M.D., director of Pathology Informatics at
MGH, explained, “The barcoding system is analogous to the
tracking mechanisms in place at companies like FedEx®. For
facilities with large case volumes like ours, it’s essential to
have a tracking tool in place that can closely monitor block and
slide locations. We developed barcoding for exactly that reason,
and we have greatly reduced time lost associated with tracking
orders, and missing blocks and slides. More importantly, we have
greatly reduced the possibility of misidentifying a slide, as
labels are now printed at the cutting stations, in a
just-in-time model, as opposed to the conventional histology
model, where labels are affixed to slides after they are
stained.”
“IMPAC is committed to advancing the functionality of its
products and leveraging relevant new technologies. By
integrating MGH’s barcoding system into PowerPath, we are
helping to further ensure that our customers have the best
anatomic pathology system available on the market today,” said
Joseph K. Jachinowski, IMPAC president and CEO.
IMPAC will add the barcoding technology into PowerPath over the
next 6-12 months for distribution beginning in 2006. For more
information about PowerPath and updates on barcoding
availability, please visit www.impac.com/pathology.
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For more information, please contact:
Julie DeSantis, Public Relations Manager
IMPAC Medical Systems, Inc.
Tel: +1 650-623-8883, e-mail: jdesantis@impac.com
Investor Enquiries:
International: Peter Ejemyr, Group VP Corporate Communications,
Elekta AB
Tel: +46 733 611 000, e-mail: peter.ejemyr@elekta.com
United States: Lars Jonsteg, VP Investor Relations North
America, Elekta Inc.
Tel: +46 708-783 735, e-mail: lars.jonsteg@elekta.com
About IMPAC Medical Systems, Inc.
IMPAC Medical Systems, Inc., a company in the Elekta Group,
provides healthcare IT solutions that streamline clinical and
business operations across the spectrum of cancer care. IMPAC’s
open integration to multiple healthcare data and imaging systems
offers oncology-specific patient charting and practice
management, as well as best-of-breed systems for anatomic
pathology, clinical laboratory, and cancer registry. With
products that range from diagnosis and treatment through
long-term follow-up, IMPAC provides a comprehensive oncology
management solution that helps improve overall communication,
process efficiency, and quality patient care.
About
Elekta
Elekta is an international medical-technology Group, providing
meaningful clinical solutions, comprehensive information systems
and services for improved cancer care and management of brain
disorders. All of Elekta’s solutions employ non-invasive or
minimally invasive techniques and are therefore clinically
effective, gentle on the patient and cost-effective.
With approx. 1700 employees, Elekta’s corporate headquarter is
located in Stockholm, Sweden and the company is listed on the
Stockholm Stock Exchange under the ticker EKTAb.
About
Massachusetts General Hospital
Massachusetts General Hospital, established in 1811, is the
original and largest teaching hospital of Harvard Medical
School. The MGH conducts the largest hospital-based research
program in the United States, with an annual research budget of
more than $450 million and major research centers in AIDS,
cardiovascular research, cancer, cutaneous biology, medical
imaging, neurodegenerative disorders, transplantation biology
and photomedicine. In 1994, MGH and Brigham and Women's Hospital
joined to form Partners HealthCare, an integrated health care
delivery system comprising the two academic medical centers,
specialty and community hospitals, a network of physician
groups, and nonacute and home health services.
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