News Release

TRILLIUM LAUNCHES ‘THINK’ ALLIANCE TO TRANSFORM HEALTH CARE EXPERIENCE

Technology Alliance to Change Traditional Health Care Model
And Create “Continuum of Care” Around Patient

Toronto and Mississauga, February 8, 2005 – Trillium Health Centre, a leader in health care innovation, today announced an alliance with eight of the world’s leading technology companies to transform health care delivery over seven years.

Trillium’s initiative is called THINK: Transforming Health Care into Integrated Networks of Knowledge.

“Today’s health care model is much the same as it was a century ago, with the hospital or the doctor’s office at the centre,” said Ken White, President and CEO of Trillium. “Our goal is to transform today’s system and put the patient at the centre. We are developing systems that will allow health professionals to provide patient care whenever the patient needs them, wherever they are.

“THINK will drive this transformation over the next seven years and enable Trillium to work with community partners to create a sustainable, world class community health care system.”

"Immediate access to information is critical to the delivery of quality health care, and the THINK Initiative is going to help provide that," said Health and Long-Term Care Minister George Smitherman. "This is precisely the kind of thing we need more of in Ontario."

The budget for THINK is $100 million over seven years. This will be achieved in part by allocating a portion of internal resources and capital investments as well as reinvesting savings from efficiencies achieved in clinical and non-clinical areas.

Said Rik Ganderton of IBM Canada: “THINK is among the most advanced health technology projects in North America. It will extend the walls of the hospital across the community and into the homes and offices of the people using the system. THINK will change how the community sees its hospitals – not simply as buildings, but as a network of medical knowledge integrated with the community itself.”

By harnessing cutting edge technologies to deliver data and imaging online and wirelessly, THINK will:

• Integrate multiple health care records – from lab tests and radiology to pharmacology and patient scheduling – into a single, electronic patient record;

• Subject to patient approval, enable instant distribution of patient data to members of their health care team, no matter whether they are in their offices or on mobile PDAs and tablet PCs in the patient’s hospital room or home;
• Permit the health care team to track progress of discharged patients online, enabling a continuum of care;

• Provide connectivity between the patient and their family with the hospital, specialist, nurse, general practitioner, pharmacist, home care worker, and others involved in the continuum of care;

• Reduce wait times for diagnoses and treatment;

• Empower the patient to schedule diagnostic and other procedures online

• Allow health care workers to spend less time on paperwork and more time with patients.

THINK draws on the knowledge and expertise of some of the world’s leading companies in data management, distribution, storage and security. Led by Trillium, the THINK partnership includes:

IBM Project Manager and Integrator
Eclipsys Clinical Systems
Cognos Business Intelligence Systems
Courtyard Records Integration Systems
Sybase Database Architecture
Agfa Electronic Imaging Management
EMC2 Data Storage
IMS Disease Management Systems

Under the terms of the alliance, the nine companies will work cooperatively to develop integrated information systems for Trillium. Each of the companies has committed to putting its staff experts at Trillium, working side-by-side with the hospital team. Trillium will define the goals, procedures and operating environment in which the information systems must be made to work. Trillium also will test applications in hospital settings.

“A sustainable health care system for Ontario requires that our hospitals re-think service delivery in the context of finite resources and increased demand,” said Mr. White. “The partners in THINK are tackling the biggest challenge to Medicare since its inception: how best to use technology to improve the quality, efficiency, and long-term sustainability of health service delivery in our community and across the country.”

ABOUT TRILLIUM HEALTH CENTRE
Trillium Health Centre is one of Canada’s leading community hospitals, with expanding tertiary care programs in cardiac care, stroke, orthopaedics and neurosurgery. Serving over one million residents in Mississauga, Southwest Toronto and from other communities across Ontario, Trillium has redefined the boundaries of community health care delivery. Housing a model ambulatory care centre, one of the busiest Emergency services in the country, and the largest free-standing day surgery centre in North America, the two-site facility is attracting international attention for its innovative approach to the provision of health care services.

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About THINK

THINK Partners

THINK Qs and As

MEDIA CONTACT: Robert Longphee, (905) 848-7580 ext 3666

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