McKesson Acquisition of Vivalog to Deliver Case Sharing and Clinical Conferencing

Capabilities expand McKesson enterprise imaging suite, helping to
improve clinical outcomes and radiologist productivity
ATLANTA--(Business Wire)--
McKesson today announced it has acquired Vivalog LLC, a leading
provider of Web-based solutions, including its MyPACS.net medical
imaging reference site, that enable radiologists, cardiologists, and
other imaging specialists to efficiently organize and share image and
reference case information needed during daily practice. This
portfolio extends current hospital imaging and information management
systems with reference case management and clinical conferencing
capabilities that result in rich, multimedia knowledge repositories to
assist in diagnostics as well as research and training.

"Currently, radiologists and cardiologists spend considerable time
every day manually preparing and searching for documented reference
cases for clinical rounds, conferences, training and research
projects, using inadequate tools," said Joe Biegel, vice president,
product management, McKesson's Medical Imaging Group. "With this
solution, McKesson can help healthcare organizations improve their
bottom line. Imaging specialists will be able to spend fewer hours
each week preparing for rounds and conferences, freeing up more time
for patient care and revenue-generating activities. Furthermore, this
solution offers a constantly growing decision support resource which
allows imaging specialists to efficiently look up reference cases when
deciding on a diagnosis, helping to reduce diagnostic errors."

By providing imaging specialists with instant access to related
cases, the Vivalog system saves time by eliminating unnecessary steps.
A fully integrated reference case management solution provides staff
with faster access to their peers' knowledge and an efficient way to
capture and share their own evolving knowledge.

Vivalog also facilitates collaboration and communication among
radiologists during the diagnostic decision process. The solution set
includes integrated access to MyPACS.net, a Web-based community for
radiology decision support and exchange of case knowledge. MyPACS.net
houses the largest collection of online teaching files, serving as a
global, comprehensive decision-support resource. Since its inception
eight years ago, users have contributed 18,000 reference cases
depicting thousands of diseases. Cases are displayed using
patent-pending Web technology that lets the users manipulate images
directly in their browser without need for additional software. Each
month, the site receives approximately 1 million page views from
70,000 imaging professionals around the world. Vivalog's most recent
innovation uses biomedical case management and collaborative
knowledge-sharing technologies to support image-based research and
clinical trials.

"Radiologists are overworked and, like other clinicians, want to
do all they can to prevent diagnostic errors," said Rex Jakobovits,
Ph.D., Vivalog founder and president. "Our solution enables imaging
specialists to leverage the wealth of information inherent in their
image archives and provides a more efficient mechanism for global
collaboration and communication of findings."

With the addition of these solutions, McKesson's information
technology-based enterprise imaging offering continues to lead the
industry in enabling healthcare facilities to provide better, safer
care. McKesson's enterprise imaging solutions offer unprecedented data
sharing, connecting the entire care team and speeding the diagnostic
process - from ordering a procedure to distributing reports and
diagnoses. McKesson intends to continue to leverage the excellent
standards-based connectivity of the Vivalog product set in order to
allow the widest possible benefit to healthcare institutions.

About McKesson

McKesson Corporation, currently ranked 18th on the FORTUNE 500, is
a healthcare services and information technology company dedicated to
helping its customers deliver high-quality healthcare by reducing
costs, streamlining processes, and improving the quality and safety of
patient care. McKesson is the longest-operating company in healthcare
today, marking its 175th anniversary this year. Over the course of its
history, McKesson has grown by providing pharmaceutical and
medical-surgical supply management across the spectrum of care;
healthcare information technology for hospitals, physicians, homecare
and payors; hospital and retail pharmacy automation; and services for
manufacturers and payors designed to improve outcomes for patients.
For more information, visit www.mckesson.com.

McKesson
Connie Crumbley
connie.crumbley@mckesson.com
404-338-3828

Copyright Business Wire 2008