Cerner News Cheers Investors

KANSAS CITY – Analysts are bullish after the investors meeting held Thursday by Cerner, the Kansas City maker of EMR and CPOE systems.

"Overall we walked away with a greater level of conviction that Cerner 'gets it,' and will continue to gain marketshare in a rapidly evolving industry," wrote Piper Jaffray research analysts Sean W. Wieland and Mohan A. Naidu, who reiterated their "overweight rating" and $98 price target for the health IT giant.

The pair were encouraged by the growth that could be afforded by ARRA funding – monies disbursed both to Cerner itself and its provider clients – noting that the company "still expects to see a lot of opportunities from the stimulus. Specifically, their base of customers should receive about $8 billion in stimulus funds, and the company expects to see about $2 billion of this."

Cerner expects that "there will be about 2,200 CPOE decisions," the analysts continued, "and about 1,250 of those are greenfield with no existing clinical system. Most of those are critical access hospitals with [fewer than] 100 beds. During the CIO panel, we learned that there is very little chance of the timeline getting pushed out (in contrast to recent reports)."

Moreover, Wieland and Naidu were pleased that Cerner execs offered "a glimpse of growth opportunities beyond the stimulus, and numerous opportunities that could drive upside to numbers." Management expressed intent to "grow operating margin by at least 100 basis points per year on double digit revenue growth," they wrote. "We interpret that as a worst case scenario, not guidance."

Finally, the analysts expressed optimism about the company's plans for global growth, writing that president Trace Devanny's recent relocation to London "tells us that Cerner's commitment to international expansion is real," and noting Devanny's indication that the company feels "global opportunity eclipses domestic opportunity."

Specifically, the pair mentioned some Cerner projects in France due to be completed later this year, "which we believe will be a catalyst for international revenue growth in 2010. In our view, if the company can get international revenue to return to 2008 levels, it would likely drive upside to numbers."

Cerner (CERN) stock closed at $85.15 on Thursday, up from $41.48 on the same date last year.

Find out how Profero can help with your Cerner implementation here.

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Introduction to Profero Solutions

Gingrey: HIT Stimulus Bill 'Right Thing to Do'

ATLANTA – In the HIE Symposium’s opening keynote, Congressman Phil Gingrey, MD (R-Ga.), said using the stimulus bill to drive adoption of integrated EMRs is “absolutely the right thing to do.” Gingrey called the bipartisan health IT efforts “the single most important thing we can do” to bring down the cost of healthcare.

In order to have a fully integrated healthcare system, physicians need to be able to buy certified technology and have access to a health information exchange infrastructure. The industry also requires having a qualified workforce to facilitate these endeavors, he said. The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act’s HITECH Act covers those areas through incentives to healthcare providers and funding for health information exchange and regional extension centers, he said.

Gingrey said he is in favor of the incentives and penalties structure of the HITECH Act.
Co-keynote presenter Rhonda Medows, MD, commissioner and state health officer for the Georgia Dept. of Community Health, pointed out five success factors for state-level HIEs. True leadership is required. With leadership often changing, it’s critical to plan for those successions in order to have sustainability and continuity, she said.

True collaboration involves not just collaboration among public and private entities, including the business community, but also across the continuum of care, she said. Medows emphasized that clinical care should go beyond individual encounter to impact such areas as population health and emergency preparedness.

While funding is being dispersed for EMR implementations and HIEs, sustainability once those funds are gone is critical, she said. Stakeholders need to come up with financial strategies that involve concerted efforts to invest multiple resources. States need to review their current laws and administrative policies to determine their impact on HIEs, Medows said.

Finally, communication is key. Health IT enables communication. At the end of the day, the industry needs to be able to say these efforts improved care of the patient and delivery of healthcare, enabled the measurement of the effectiveness of care, enabled the use of data for such things as population health and emergency preparedness, and prompted innovation in healthcare, Medows said.

The ultimate customer is the patient and consumer, she said. “We intend to deliver with your health,” she said. “HIT is a wonderful thing. It’s a great opportunity.”

Find out what Profero Solutions can do to help you integrate the EMR program right for you. Visit the website here.

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Discover the Profero points of differentiation- Perspective, Performance, Process

Go-Live Support

Discover the Profero points of differentiation – Perspective, Performance, Process. Consider it the ultimate triple play for Electronic Medical Record (EMR) implementation. The right people, the right process and the right experience all come together to make your EMR implementation a smooth, efficient process. Look to Profero Solutions to deliver your complete EMR implementation solution.


Perspective:
We believe that a successful EMR implementation takes more than just technological expertise. It requires clinical experience in healthcare. Our highly qualified staff go in with the technical know-how to make your EMR implementation a success and the clinical hands-on background that puts them in the unique position to completely understand your specific situation.


Performance:
Our team understands the investment you’ve made in your EMR strategy. Our outstanding track record in successful EMR implementations allows us to provide realistic timelines and exceptional project management from beginning to end. We pride ourselves on the ability to expertly manage your implementation on every level — there simply won’t be any surprises along the way.


Process:
Our multi-phase process ensures the overall success of your implementation. First, highly qualified, credentialed consultants assist in everything from the building, testing and validation of your EMR software. Next, we initiate a Go-Live strategy that allows your staff to most effectively use their EMR for the first time “live” during an already busy day.


Unique Go-Live Model:
Profero Solutions unique Go-Live model blends local licensed Clinical Staff professionals with your existing staff during your EMR implementation. Ambulatory clinics and hospitals can experience a smooth, cost effective implementation by utilizing all or one component or the entire packaged Go-live solution.

We offer:
 Training & Training Support
 Unit and Integrated Testing
 Hot Line Staffing during Go-Live
 End User “24/7 Elbow Support” during Go-Live
 Super User Development
 Clinical Documentation Tools Development


866- 271- 3993

An Introduction from Barry Horton, Vice President of Profero Solutions

My name is Barry C. Horton. I have over seventeen years of experience in the healthcare consulting arena, including significant experience in implementations of clinical and financial applications at both small and large multi-specialty centers. It’s because of this that I am currently working as the Vice President for Profero Solutions.

Profero Solutions is dedicated to delivering customized implementation strategies to healthcare facilities to maximize the ROI on their EMR investment. This investment, in many cases, is one of the most significant in terms of dollars and process change.

As one of the initial Profero Solutions employees, I have been involved in all of the EMR client projects. I have experience in process improvement/redesign, project management, application build, system testing, resource/infrastructure development, resource management, training documentation development, and end user support.

Being a part of the growth of Profero has been rewarding and exciting. Our flexibility in the way we approach each implementation has proven successful in every type of healthcare environment. I’m particularly pleased to be an integral part of EMR becoming the standard in the US and the positive results that these implementations will have on patient care. If you have any questions or would just like to say ‘hello’ please message me!

Warm regards,


Barry.

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