MHS In the News

Private Equity Investment In Health Care To Increase Next Year

December 15, 2010, 1:45 PM ET

The Wall Street Journal

Health-care reform and an aging population are bolstering the confidence of the private equity industry's outlook on the sector. A survey shows that investments are expected to increase significantly next year.

Of the 327 private equity executives who responded to a Pepperdine University's Graziadio School of Business and Management survey, 11% said they planned to invest in the heath-care industry, up from 4.8% in the summer.

A number of deals have closed in recent months, and October was especially active. Management Health Solutions Inc., which sells supply chain management software and is backed by Enhanced Equity Fund LP and Radius Ventures, bought its peer Hospital Inventories Specialists.

According to the survey, called the Pepperdine Private Capital Markets Study, venture capital and angel investors are also weighing investments in health care. Of the 213 participants from venture capital firms, 25% plan to invest in the sector next year, and 23.9% of angel investors said health care and related businesses were high on their list of anticipated investments.

Management Health Solutions acquires Hospital Inventories Specialists

Healthcare Purchasing News

Management Health Solutions ("MHS"), a healthcare information technology organization that provides supply chain software and business solutions for hospitals and healthcare systems nationwide, announced Tuesday that it has acquired Hospital Inventories Specialists ("HISI"), a provider of inventory management solutions and analytical services founded in 1982. With the acquisition, MHS will nearly double its customer base and market share, and offer clients a larger repertoire of analytical tools, additional benchmark data and deep healthcare domain expertise.

"The acquisition of HISI is a major step for MHS," said Bill Zierolf, President and Chief Executive Officer of MHS. "We are buying an established and recognized industry player that will appreciably enhance the supply chain software and optimization services that MHS has provided to the US healthcare industry. Together, we'll be developing and releasing the next generation of supply chain operations tools, Optimal Inventory Control ("OPTIC") 3.0, to make managing the receipt, flow and charging of clinical supplies much more efficient."

The combined entity will have approximately 1,000 hospital clients nationwide, doubling its client base and considerably expanding its geographic footprint. MHS will increase its number of employees and more than double its inventory valued to more than $5.0 billion from $2.5 billion. As a result of the transaction, MHS will serve approximately 20% of U.S. hospitals. For more information, visit www.mhsinc.com.

Albany Medical Center selects AtPar to sharpen supply chain operations

Healthcare Purchasing News

Albany Medical Center, the only academic health sciences center in the 25 counties of eastern New York State, has signed an agreement with AtPar, Inc., a division of Management Health Solutions, Inc., that will upgrade, automate and modernize its supply chain operation using the @Par CartCount and CycleCount modules. The facility in New York's capital city will use the @Par products as the basis for an expanded installation designed to enhance par level management and ensure inventory accuracy throughout the institution. The modules are supported by a combination of workforce management and asset management reporting and will automate, complement and expand the capabilities of a hospital's materials management information system. For more information, visit www.atparinc.com.

Healthcare IT News

Management Health Solutions adds to its IT portfolio

FAIRFIELD, CT – With healthcare providers looking to their supply chain operations to improve efficiency and reduce wasteful spending, Management Health Solutions is relying on a couple of recent acquisitions to give them the IT tools they need.The Fairfield, Conn.-based developer of business solutions announced Tuesday the acquisition of Hospital Inventories Specialists, a Tampa, Fla.-based provider of inventory management solutions and analytical services. Combined with the company's acquisition of mobile supply chain software developer AtPar this past May, MHS looks to double its business in the market - the second largest cost that a hospital incurs, behind labor - reaching roughly 20 percent of the nation's hospitals at the outset.

The HISI acquisition gives MHS much-needed tools for pharmacy inventory and analytics, company officials said. "With full integration to all the leading material management information systems, our point-of-use mobile software applications provide unparalleled visibility for supply chain executives," said Mike Ferris, MHS' co-founder and executive vice president of operations. "Integrating software and professional services to independently serve our national client base is MHS' sole focus as a company."

"Bringing these two companies together makes perfect sense," added Martin C. Wein, HISI's principal and president. "The improvement in supply chain management that MHS will bring to a greater cross-section of the U.S. healthcare industry will not just reduce overall cost but improve patient safety as well."

Healthcare Finance News

MHS bolsters supply chain portfolio with inventory management deal

Management Health Solutions, a Fairfield, Conn.-based developer of business solutions announced the acquisition of Hospital Inventories Specialists, a Tampa, Fla.-based provider of inventory management solutions and analytical services.

"The acquisition of HISI is a major step for MHS," said Bill Zierolf, president and Chief Executive Officer of MHS. "We are buying an established and recognized industry player that will appreciably enhance the supply chain software and optimization services that MHS has provided to the U.S. healthcare industry.

"The market opportunity and potential for growth is tremendous," he added. "The majority of hospitals across the United States have yet to implement integrated point-of-use supply chain software, content management solutions and optimization best practices for tracking, managing, ordering and analyzing the flow and consumption of clinical supplies. Millions of dollars are wasted annually through overstocking, expired inventory, and last minute, overnight resupply. Our flagship product, OPTIC, addresses these needs and helps reduce cost and improve patient safety through increased visibility."

When acquiring Lebanon, N.H.-based AtPar earlier this year, Zierolf said hospitals stand to waste 30 percent to 40 percent of their budget on overstocked or out-of-date supplies or emergency orders for understocked items. He called the situation "a $70 billion industry with little automation," and said hospitals have to move away from manual, paper-intensive audits.

Modernhealthcare.com

Management Health Solutions buys analytics company

Posted: October 19, 2010 - 11:00 am ET

Supply-chain information technology and services provider Management Health Solutions, Fairfield, Conn., has acquired Hospital Inventories Specialists, Tampa, Fla., a provider of inventory management and analytics software and services, according to a Management Health news release.

According to the release, the purchase will "nearly double" Management Health Solutions' customer base to about 1,000 U.S. hospitals and will make available to existing MHS customers "a larger repertoire of analytical tools, additional benchmark data and deep healthcare domain expertise."