Wolters Kluwer Health Enters Joint Venture with China Drug Information Provider Medicom

PHILADELPHIA, Jan. 19, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Wolters Kluwer Health today announced a joint venture with leading China drug information provider Medicom to deliver clinical decision support to doctors in China as the country prepares for significant changes to its healthcare system. The deal allows Wolters Kluwer Health to expand its market-leading Clinical Decision Support (CDS) and drug information business into the rapidly growing China market and creates a needed drug information infrastructure in China.

"The clinical decision support market in China is at a critical juncture, similar to what we saw in the U.S. market many years ago," said Arvind Subramanian, President & CEO, Wolters Kluwer Health Clinical Solutions. "Our agreement with Medicom gives Wolters Kluwer Health a strong entry point in China and creates a solid foundation for us to introduce more advanced CDS products and solutions that will give healthcare professionals in China unparalleled access to evidence-based medicine for the advancement of healthcare."

Medicom, located in the city of Chengdu in the Sichuan Province, has a strong footprint in the China healthcare market, providing drug information and services. Its products and services are highly complementary to those of Wolters Kluwer Health's Clinical Solutions business, which offers healthcare professionals fast access to evidence-based medical information that helps clinicians effectively manage patient care on a daily basis. The combined offering creates a robust library of clinical content not previously available in China that physicians can access at the point of learning as well as at the point of care with patients.

The announcement comes as the Chinese government is focused on healthcare reform to conform standards of care and an increasing number of doctors in China prepare to pursue graduate school degrees.

"Our joint venture with Wolters Kluwer Health is a strategic fit for Medicom as we continue to deliver on our mission of providing the most reliable and accurate clinical and drug information for doctors, pharmacists and hospitals," said Lai Qi, CEO of Medicom.  "This partnership will also provide Medicom access to a more comprehensive set of products and services to support China's healthcare reform initiatives of improving productivity and quality of care."

Wolters Kluwer Health's drug information products and services have been relied on by pharmacists, hospitals, health insurers and physician offices in the US for more than 60 years. Meanwhile, Medicom has created the most robust suite of Chinese drug information products in use by hospitals in China.

As part of the agreement, Wolters Kluwer Health will have a controlling interest in the joint venture. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. For more information on Wolters Kluwer Health, visit www.wolterskluwerhealth.com.

About Wolters Kluwer Health

Wolters Kluwer Health (Philadelphia, PA) is a leading provider of information and business intelligence for students, professionals and institutions in medicine, nursing, allied health and pharmacy. Major brands include traditional publishers of medical and drug reference tools, journals, and textbooks, such as Lippincott Williams & Wilkins; and electronic information providers, such as Ovid®, UpToDate®, Medi-Span®, Facts & Comparisons® and ProVation® Medical.

Wolters Kluwer Health is part of Wolters Kluwer, a market-leading global information services company. Professionals in the areas of legal, business, tax, accounting, finance, audit, risk, compliance, and healthcare rely on Wolters Kluwer's leading, information-enabled tools and solutions to manage their business efficiently, deliver results to their clients, and succeed in an ever more dynamic world.

Wolters Kluwer has 2009 annual revenues of euro 3.4 billion ($4.8 billion), employs approximately 19,300 people worldwide, and maintains operations in over 40 countries across Europe, North America, Asia Pacific, and Latin America. Wolters Kluwer is headquartered in Alphen aan den Rijn, the Netherlands. Its shares are quoted on Euronext Amsterdam (WKL) and are included in the AEX and Euronext 100 indices.

SOURCE Wolters Kluwer Health