Vendor Acquisitions: Lexmark, Press Ganey Making Moves

The Lexington, Ky.-based Lexmark announced this week it has acquired Acuo Technologies, a Bloomington, Minn.-based provider of clinical imaging software. The value of the deal was worth $45 million, according to a Lexmark press release.

Acuo’s platform is aimed at enterprise customers, using a vendor neutral archive (VNA) foundation, the firm says. The software can reportedly consolidate images, and it will be teamed with Lexmark software that according to the company will “deploy a single, enterprise-wide access platform for clinical content via any electronic medical record (EMR) system.” According to Lexmark, Acuo will become a part of Perceptive Software, which is a Lexmark company.

“Perceptive Software's rich process and content solution combined with Acuo Technologies' Universal Clinical Platform will provide users a single, enterprise-wide view of all patient medical information from within the EMR system," Scott Coons, Perceptive Software president and CEO and Lexmark vice president, said in a statement.

Elsewhere, Press Ganey Associates (South Bend, Ind.),which provides clinical improvement software, announced it acquired Morehead Associates, Inc., which is a physician engagement firm. Morehead, like Press Ganey, offers survey services which aim to measure certain elements of a clinical provider, in this case, the relationship between physicians and the provider.

“The acquisition of Morehead enables us to rapidly fulfill our vision of redefining the patient experience industry,” Patrick T. Ryan, CEO of Press Ganey, said in a statement. “Clearly, as the first line of contact, employee and physician perceptions, alignment and engagement are among the most critical factors in understanding opportunities for improvement. We believe the combination of Morehead’s capabilities with Press Ganey’s strengths will better support our clients. Today is a good day for patients across the country.”