BG Industries, a leader in cost effective therapeutic support surfaces, announces their agreement with Champs Management Services to provide its member facilities with BGI's pressure reduction and pressure relief mattresses and related skin management products. For more than 80 years, The Center for Health Affairs (CHA) has represented the interests of hospitals and healthcare delivery systems in Northeast Ohio and CHAMPS is its management services organization. The CHA has built a reputation for high quality patient products for use in acute and long term care facilities.

BG Industries has for over 33 years provided high quality patient support surfaces to the healthcare community. BG Industries customers include acute and subacute care facilities. Its products are designed to provide cost-effective solutions and improve patient outcomes across the entire healthcare spectrum. Contact: 800.822.8288.

Real-time Video and Document Transfer is used in Aventis' new pilot initiative for physician interactivity.

Aventis Pharmaceuticals, the U.S. pharmaceuticals business of Aventis Pharma AG, debuted at the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) Conference a new Internet-based platform that enables medical professionals seeking drug information to quickly connect with an Aventis Medical Information healthcare professional over the Web. This pilot is part of the Aventis e-business strategy to enhance better patient outcomes through technology.

?Using a PC and browser, physicians go to a secure Website, log-on, and immediately connect with a medical information specialist. Once connected, the physician and medical information professional can communicate via a Web-cam installed at Aventis' Medical Affairs in real-time via chat technology that requires no download or phone. During the session, product information, including indications and usage, dosing and clinical data is transmitted to the physicians' desktop. The medical information specialist is also able to highlight documentation on screen and tailor content to meet the physicians' needs. This pilot represents an example of how Aventis is using technology to bring medical information to physicians. Using this type of new technology, questions can be resolved quickly, and physicians will receive a detailed response in minutes. This initial pilot uses Cisco System's collaboration software and a video component from Light Communications. Aventis expects to release a second pilot in the fall of 2001. Aventis Pharmaceuticals conducts the U.S. business of Aventis Pharma AG. Headquartered in Bridgewater, NJ, Aventis Pharmaceuticals focuses its activities on important therapeutic areas such as cardiology, oncology, anti-infectives, arthritis, allergy and respiratory, diabetes, and the central nervous system. Contact: 908.243.6579.

Electronic Bedside Interactive Care System Available

OneTouch Technologies is unveiling the "OneTouch System," an electronic data recording system for inputting patient information by caregivers at bedside, enabling long-term care facilities to improve patient care and operational efficiency. OneTouch Technologies expects to conclude its first two system contracts before the end of May and commence pilot tests with several major long-term care chains before the end of June 2001.

? The OneTouch System comprises a computer microchip ("iButton®") embedded on both a patient's identification wristband and on the caregiver's name badge. In addition, a customized Personal Digital Assistant (PDA) and wand is used by the caregiver to read the iButtons and record the pertinent patient information.

? On the PDA, the OneTouch System provides a pre-formatted clinical checklist/menu of observations to be made and procedures to be performed and recorded. This enables the caregiver to simply touch an icon on the screen to record pre-configured information without computer keystrokes and in minimal time. The information gathered on the PDA is transferred immediately to the patient's iButton, so that important patient data can be accessed from their wristband by subsequent caregivers, and to the long-term care facility's network server. The OneTouch System then automatically completes the necessary computations and distributes the collected data and caregiver notes, making the information available to all authorized personnel throughout the network. The OneTouch System is designed for use in "post-acute" or long-term care facilities, or services such as skilled nursing, assisted living, home health care and hospices. OneTouch Technologyes provides comprehensive data collection and clinical information management systems to the long-term care industry through its own proprietary software and hardware solutions intended to ensure a level of accuracy in patient doucmentation and improved economic results.

Contact 714.619.3800