Medsphere and Tolven Partner to Expand and Renew OpenVista® Functionality

ORLANDO, Fla.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Medsphere Systems Corporation today announced a partnership with Tolven, Inc., a provider of support and consulting services oriented around the Tolven Open Source Project. The agreement effectively coordinates the ongoing efforts of the two Open Source entities with the intention of improving healthcare by developing clinical and administrative tools that maximize the disruptive capacities of the latest information technologies.

Medsphere’s OpenVista® electronic health record (EHR) is a commercialized Open Source version of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) VistA solution. Tolven provides healthcare with an Open Source, standards-based platform that is highly adaptable, supports many healthcare environments, and enables meaningful collaboration.

“The agreement with Tolven makes OpenVista a technology independent tool, giving it the versatility necessary to interact with any number of valuable applications and technologies,” said Medsphere CEO Michael J. Doyle. “This scenario means healthcare facilities can maximize the use of existing technological tools in a single interactive solution. The partnership is also exactly the kind of relationship we are looking for, in that it is based on Open Source technology and is broadly collaborative in the pursuit of better care.”

The agreement with Tolven is part of a broader Surround, Supplement, Renew (SSR) strategy Medsphere is implementing. The SSR approach will make OpenVista data available through the Tolven platform to the Tolven Electronic Personal and Clinician Health Record solutions, as well as other applications and devices based on other technologies.

Details of the agreement between Medsphere and Tolven provide insight into the ways in which OpenVista will be enhanced. After the completion of planned development, Medsphere’s Open Source EHR will incorporate affordable scalability, a Web-based architecture for application service provider (ASP) or software as a service (SaaS) implementation, technology refresh capabilities, technology independence, greater mobility, and a foundation for further Supplement and Renew development efforts.

“Tolven is pleased to have been selected by Medsphere as a strategic and technology partner for the extension of the OpenVista solution,” said Tolven CEO Neil Cowles. “Tolven and Medsphere's joint commitment to the development of Open Source healthcare information technology will enable us to jointly deliver high quality, affordable standards-based solutions to the global healthcare marketplace.”

The Tolven agreement is the latest development in Medsphere’s commercial Open Source strategy. The VistA platform on which OpenVista is based is used in all VA facilities and is credited with helping turn the VA into a national leader in quality patient care. Medsphere has enhanced VistA to meet the needs of non-VA healthcare providers and added professional services, ongoing product development, and 24x7 technical support, providing the safety of a professional Open Source delivery model without expensive up-front proprietary license fees.

The Tolven agreement is only one in a recent series of events at Medsphere that includes Doyle taking over leadership as CEO, Rick Jung coming on board as chief operating officer, Dr. Edmund Billings’ appointment as chief medical officer, and Scott McMullen joining as vice president of engineering. The company’s current activities include OpenVista implementations at Lutheran Medical Center in Brooklyn, New York, Memorial Hospital of Sweetwater County in Rock Springs, Wyoming, and facilities in the West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources (WV DHHR). The system is already in use at LA’s Century City Doctors Hospital, Midland Memorial Hospital in Midland, Texas, several WV DHHR facilities, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' Indian Health Service, and a variety of other care delivery organizations.

About Tolven

Tolven is a privately held California-based company that provides technical support and consulting services associated with the Tolven Open Source Project. Tolven aims to make Open Source healthcare information solutions that realize the true potential of the latest technology available to all, while bridging the gap between consumers, employers and healthcare providers.

The vision of Tolven is to develop the most innovative health informatics and service delivery solutions, with global applicability. Tolven is accomplishing this goal by leveraging the affordable nature and quality of Open Source software development to provide high quality, low cost, and secure electronic health record solutions for consumers and clinicians alike. The open standards and Open Source business model that Tolven has adopted facilitate rapid collaborations with other Open Source developers working in the healthcare and life science marketplaces. These collaborations will accelerate the vitally necessary integration of healthcare and life science solutions available in the marketplace. Tolven software is distributed freely to the open source community under GNU L-GPL license terms. More information about Tolven is available at http://www.tolvenhealth.com.

About Medsphere Systems Corporation

As the Open Source source for healthcare, Medsphere is revolutionizing the industry by delivering commercially supported software based on the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs’ proven VistA electronic health record (EHR). Medsphere offers healthcare an economically sustainable and comprehensive solution in OpenVista®, a portfolio of products and professional services for hospitals, clinics and integrated delivery networks. The company addresses the capital constraints of the healthcare industry through an innovative subscription-based pricing model. Medsphere's experienced team of healthcare technology professionals and unique suite of implementation tools deliver a fluid transition to a comprehensive healthcare information technology solution. Founded in 2002, Medsphere is backed financially by Azure Capital Partners, Thomas Weisel Venture Partners, and EPIC Ventures (formerly the Wasatch Venture Fund). For more information, visit http://www.medsphere.com.