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QUESTRA AND METRIX TO AUTOMATE REMOTE DIAGNOSTICS AND FIELD SERVICE FOR HEALTH CARE INDUSTRYRedwood City, CA-October 16, 2002- Questra Corp., a leader in device relationship management (DRM) software, and Metrix, Inc., a pioneer in the service automation industry, have joined forces to deliver field service solutions that meet the unique needs of medical equipment for patient privacy protection, assured uptime, and low maintenance costs. The companies will integrate and co-market the Questra Smart Service Solution™ with Metrix's industry-leading ProductService CRM™ solution. The Questra device monitoring application links directly to Metrix call center and field service operations, passing alerts generated by an instrument to field service technicians. The combination of Questra device monitoring software and Metrix field service automation makes it simpler for medical institutions to meet pending federal government regulations protecting confidential patient information. Under the Health Insurance Portability & Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA), the Department of Health and Human Services has set a deadline of April 2003 for all covered health care organizations to comply with the final Privacy Rule protecting patient confidentiality. "Our integrated remote diagnostic solution is an excellent choice for medical equipment manufacturers and covered health care providers because both Questra and Metrix have focused on understanding health care needs and have invested in data security that meets or exceeds health care regulatory requirements," said Vesna Swartz, Questra vice president marketing. Secure and Proactive Remote Diagnostics The integrated offering is an off-the-shelf field service solution that accommodates a wide variety of medical devices for HIPAA-compliance requirements. All data communicated is encrypted, with additional layers of protection in place. Compared to generic dial-up solutions that some organizations use to query individual devices after a problem has occurred, the Questra and Metrix solution is automated, proactive, and has tight security provisions. It adds to existing network-based protection (firewalls and intrusion detection systems, for example) rather than bypassing them, as do many dial-up solutions. By using a network-based solution, manufacturers also do not conflict with bans on dial-up solutions imposed at some health care providers. Continuous Uptime Through Instrument Monitoring "Continuous uptime is also a key component of any field service program for medical devices, including laboratory testing equipment," said Harvey Shovers, Metrix vice president sales and marketing. With the Questra and Metrix solution, real-time device performance data can trigger a field service action before production is interrupted. When equipment problems arise, the Questra Smart Service Solution routes alerts to the technical support and service dispatch functions of Metrix's eProductService™, significantly speeding response and reducing costs. Dotti Bernsten, strategic advisor, Diagnostic Products Corporation, said, "Questra and Metrix bring to the medical equipment industry a clear view of how to meet the crisis in service and support. Their innovative approach changes service from a reactive process to a proactive process that can help identify problems before they impact customers." Questra and Metrix are offering a free web seminar titled "The Economics of Uptime" on 23 October to discuss secure remote diagnostics for the health care market. Registration is open on www.questra.com. About Device Relationship Management Device relationship management (DRM) is enterprise software that enables companies to significantly drive efficiencies, lower costs and increase customer satisfaction through the monitoring, diagnostics, and servicing of intelligent devices over the Internet. DRM software allows businesses to deliver higher levels of critical support for equipment ranging from a heart monitor to an imaging device to almost any type of equipment, instrument, or machine that has built-in computing capability. Device relationship management software enhances the delivery of service and support by maintaining a continuous flow of automated real-time information between onsite people and applications and remote devices, anywhere in the world. About Metrix (www.metrix.com) Metrix Inc., the pioneer of the service automation industry, is the leading provider of eProductService™ solutions. Its Web-based software products and integrated applications address all aspects of the product service chain for organizations worldwide with on-site field service or repair center activities for industries including medical equipment, high-tech and electronics, measuring and control devices, telecommunications, third-party logistics, durable goods and other manufacturing. Metrix headquarters are located in Waukesha, Wis., (800-543-2130, 262-717-6500) with additional offices nationwide. Its European headquarters are located in The Hague, the Netherlands: 31- (0)70-383-4114. About Questra (www.questra.com) Questra is a leading enterprise software company focused on optimizing global service and support. Questra's device relationship management (DRM) solutions enable customers to significantly reduce service costs by using the Internet to manage collaboration between enterprises and their intelligent devices around the world. Customers using Questra Smart Service Solution lower their service costs through reduced emergency calls and proactive device monitoring and diagnostics. Questra completed a second round of financing of $19M with Menlo Ventures and Trident Capital in January 2002. The company is headquartered in Rochester, NY. Editorial Contact: Jason Faltinek Metrix, Inc. 262-717-6500 jfaltinek@metrix.com top of page |
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