Merge Healthcare logo. (PRNewsFoto) MILWAUKEE, WI UNITED STATES

   Radiology facilities use multi-modality, vendor-neutral workstation to
       enhance efficiency and ease transition to digital mammography

    MILWAUKEE, Nov. 26 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Merge eMed, a Merge
Healthcare company (Nasdaq: MRGE; TSX: MRG) and a leading medical imaging
software and services company, today announced new installations of
MergeMammo(TM), a multi-modality, vendor-neutral softcopy workstation for
reading and review of digital mammography images. Among numerous adopters
of this solution are Insight Health Corp., Lake Forest, California;
Southcoast Radiology, Savannah, Georgia; and Zwanger-Pesiri Radiology
Group, Long Island, NY.
    (Logo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20030430/MRGELOGO )
    MergeMammo streamlines breast imaging workflow and enhances clinical
reading capabilities. With MergeMammo, breast images from any modality can
all be displayed on the same workstation, allowing radiologists to quickly
compare images on a single screen. Beyond its multi-modality capability,
the Merge eMed solution is vendor-neutral; users can simultaneously read
images produced by any vendors' device on a single MergeMammo workstation,
eliminating the need for organizations to invest in and radiologists to
learn multiple mammography workstation software applications.
    InSight Health Corp, which performs approximately 77,000 mammography
procedures annually using 18 mammography units in 14 imaging centers
nationwide, deployed MergeMammo at one of its imaging centers based in
Encino, California. "With digital mammography, we've improved image quality
and clinical effectiveness, while also increasing productivity," said Gregg
C. Daversa, vice president of technical services for InSight Health Corp.
"As we continue to migrate to digital mammography at other centers the
MergeMammo workstation will be critically important to optimize workflow,
limit costs and respond to market demand and payors who are setting new
requirements regarding digital mammography."
    Daversa adds that digital mammography is an important marketing
differentiator. "It enables us to provide faster, more comfortable tests,
reduce radiation exposure to patients, and make results available
electronically to both patients and referring physicians," noted Daversa.
    Dr. Patricia Shapiro of Southcoast Radiology describes efficiency in
moving to digital and using MergeMammo. "Previously with film, we dedicated
two technologists and one assistant who served 30 to 35 patients each day.
Now, using MergeMammo with a digital imaging system, we have one
technologist and a part-time assistant who serve 35 or more patients
daily," she said. "We decided on MergeMammo predominantly because it is not
a proprietary system. Regardless of our acquisition vendor or vendors, we
are not forced to use multiple workstations."
    Matt Dewey, RIS/PACS manager of Zwanger-Pesiri's five free-standing
imaging centers, says cost was a critical factor in choosing MergeMammo.
His organization shifted to digital in early 2005, then increased its
number of acquisition units. "With five rooms running and only two single
reading workstations, our workflow was often backed up, sometimes by a week
or more," Dewey stated. "Expanding was a costly proposition because each
workstation from our digital vendor exceeded $100,000. MergeMammo pricing
is much more reasonable. Now, with workstations in every office,
radiologists at our main site read from and make updates to a single
database. We've improved workflow speed and provide real-time information
for everyone to see."
    These administrators also like capabilities for customizing the
MergeMammo interface. "Radiologists can design how they want their
environment to look and specify viewing protocols to replicate their
personal workflow styles," Dewey said. "This detail is centrally stored and
follows users from machine to machine."
    Digital mammography offers significant opportunity for organizations to
improve quality and expand customer service. "According to recent
statistics, more than 8,800 sites are doing mammography in the US, yet less
than 10% are digital," said Tim Kulbago, Chief Strategy Officer. "A major
boost came with the publication of DMIST results in the fall of 2005,
showing that digital mammography is more accurate than film for some
women," Kulbago stated.
    "Imaging organizations should clearly understand the potential value of
moving to digital mammography, carefully evaluate options and pragmatically
plan for the conversion," said Kulbago, adding that several challenges
exist in moving from film to digital mammography. Many organizations try to
blend mammography systems inherited from merger or acquisition activity.
The cost of digital mammography prohibits some from converting to digital
fully across the enterprise. Most seek to streamline workflow by avoiding
multiple stand- alone workstations within their organizations.
    "The result of these challenges is that imaging centers cannot afford
or do not want to be locked into a single mammography vendor. Most need a
workstation that will grow with their business, and many seek to optimize
collaboration across multiple facilities," Kulbago said. "MergeMammo is
specifically designed to cost-effectively address these needs."
    About Merge Healthcare
    Merge Healthcare is a market leader in the development and delivery of
medical imaging and information management software and services. Merge
Healthcare is comprised of three business units:
    --  Cedara Software, providing medical imaging, Custom Engineering and IT
        solutions to the Global OEM market
    --  Merge eMed, providing RIS, PACS and Clinical Applications to
        hospitals, imaging centers and specialty clinics in North America
    --  Merge Healthcare EMEA, providing RIS, PACS, Clinical Applications and
        Electronic Patient Records in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa.
    Merge Healthcare has over 20 years of leadership in the medical imaging
and healthcare information technology market. For OEM customers, Merge
Healthcare custom engineers clinical and imaging applications and
development tools that are on the forefront of medicine and its use of
medical imaging for OEM customers. For end-user customers, we develop
innovative medical imaging software solutions that support end-to-end
business and clinical workflow for radiology department and specialty
practices, imaging centers and hospitals. Our innovative software solutions
use leading-edge imaging software technologies that accelerate market
delivery for our OEM customers, while our end-user solutions improve our
customers' productivity and enhance the quality of patient care they
provide.

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