FONEMED Expands to the International Market

September 10, 1997, GENEVA (ITU Inter@ctive Conference) -- FONEMED is proud to announce the establishment of its first international joint venture, FONEMED de Venezuela. This announcement was made today to the world press at the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) Interactive Conference by Ken Bleakley, Managing Partner of FONEMED. The joint venture is between FONEMED, a US company, and GERESIN and GRUPO CIFRA, two leading Venezuela telecommunications and health management companies, and will be opening a Medical Call Center in Caracas before the year’s end. FONEMED is expanding to the international market because of the great demand it sees for fully integrated medical call systems.

Ken Bleakley notes the potential of information technology to improve access to healthcare in Latin America. He observes that, "The success of FONEMED in meeting personal health management requirements in the United States and the many inquiries we have had from abroad are strong indications that the rest of the world is ready for us to establish Medical Call Centers internationally. The leadership of our Venezuelan partners in healthcare administration and information technology combined with our 35 years experience in the global marketplace had convinced us that FONEMED is uniquely positioned to master the challenges of delivering this advanced state-of-the-art technology to other nations in their native language."

Dr. Raul Rodriguez, speaking on behalf of FONEMED de Venezuela, stated that he welcomed the opportunity for Venezuela to be a pioneer in bringing the advanced medical technology represented by FONEMED to Latin America. He stated, "We believe that our Medical Call Center in Caracas will be of great service not only to clinics, insurance companies and individuals in providing more effective access to healthcare, but can also support public programs to benefit many individuals who now have limited or no access to medical treatment."

FONEMED’s US and International operations are headquartered in Colorado Springs, Colorado, USA. In addition to establishing Call Centers abroad, FONEMED markets and manages Medical Call Center Services for US health plans, associations, non-profit organizations, businesses, public utilities, and the military. The FONEMED Medical Call Center provides 24-hour medical advice from a Registered Nurse using the software designed by National Health Enhancement Systems (NHES), clinical algorithms developed by MICROMEDEX® , and pediatric guidelines written by Dr. Barton Schmitt of Denver Children's Hospital. The call center also features the largest fully-automated Audio Health Library in the health care industry with topics in English and Spanish.