General Dynamics to support open source Indian Health Service (IHS) health IT systems

FAIRFAX, Va., Aug. 10, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- General Dynamics Information Technology, a business unit of General Dynamics (NYSE: GD), was awarded a task order in April 2012 by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to provide software engineering and support services for the Indian Health Service's electronic health information system, called the Resource and Patient Management System (RPMS).  This five-year contract has a potential value of $20.6 million if all options are exercised.

Indian Health Service (IHS) healthcare providers use the RPMS electronic health record to direct patient care for American Indian and Alaska Native patients at facilities nationwide, and to provide insight into treatment outcomes and best practices through clinical analytics and population-health measurement tools. As a core part of this effort, General Dynamics will use its Health Information Exchange Open Source (HIEOS™) solution to share data securely among IHS facilities and connect IHS facilities to the Nationwide Health Information Network.  In addition, General Dynamics will integrate and re-engineer legacy applications to meet IHS's evolving business models and take advantage of current and future technology platforms.

"We are committed to helping IHS advance personal and public health services for American Indian and Alaska Native people," said Marcus Collier, senior vice president of the Health and Civilian Solutions Division for General Dynamics Information Technology.  "We are pleased to continue working with IHS to deliver health IT solutions that enable efficient healthcare delivery and improved health outcomes through better business processes."

The Nationwide Health Information Network is a set of standards, services and policies that provide a foundation for the exchange of health information across diverse entities, within communities and across the country, via the Internet.  Since 2003, General Dynamics has worked with the IHS to enhance its electronic health information system,  which includes more than 60 integrated software components containing clinical, administrative and financial information for 1.9 million IHS patients.  General Dynamics also has led key IHS modernization efforts such as the National Health Information Exchange and Nationwide Health Information Network Gateway.

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