Dr. Dennis Morrison Joins Netsmart as Chief Clinical Officer

GREAT RIVER, N.Y., Jan. 17, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Netsmart, the leading provider of clinical solutions for health and human services organizations nationwide, today announced that Dr. Dennis Morrison, a national  thought leader and researcher in clinical behavioral health, has joined Netsmart as Chief Clinical Officer.

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Morrison will lead the Netsmart clinical team in transforming  clinical care in behavioral health by focusing on evidence-based practice, recovery- and research-based care, coordinated care planning, and the integration of behavioral and primary care. Morrison brings a clinical perspective to the development of electronic health record (EHR) technology, which supports the Netsmart vision of "by clinicians for clinicians." With nearly 40 years of experience in the field of behavioral health, Morrison joins Netsmart from Centerstone, a private, not-for-profit mental health research and information technology company, where he served as chief executive officer for its well-known Centerstone Research Institute.

"I've always believed information technology can play a key role in revolutionizing the way healthcare is delivered," said Morrison. "Netsmart's experience, commitment to innovation, large client base, domain expertise, and industry leadership make it the one technology provider with the vision and resources to make this clinical impact a reality on a broad scale."

In addition to continuing to play a clinical leadership role at the national level, Morrison will lead the development of Netsmart solutions to match clinical workflows, incorporate evidence-based practices, promote integrated clinical data exchange across the continuum of care, increase organizational efficiencies, and improve patient care and outcomes.

He also will guide the company's national clinical and operational benchmarking service initiative that will leverage aggregate clinical and management data and best practices from across the Netsmart client base, enabling behavioral health providers across the country to enhance quality of care and improve operational efficiencies.

"We believe that our large, nationwide client base is the ideal platform for us to proliferate the use of evidence-based and proven clinical practices – and we believe that as the leader of our industry, we have an obligation to the communities we serve to make this happen," said Mike Valentine, CEO, Netsmart. "We are thrilled to have a proven thought leader like Denny with a track record of both discovery and practical implementation at the helm for this journey."

"Netsmart is committed to the leadership, innovation, focus and relationships needed to help its clients and the industry advance this important clinical agenda," said Morrison. "I'm pleased to join Netsmart and play a key role in this exciting evolution of care."

About Netsmart Technologies

Netsmart Technologies helps health and human services organizations transform care through the collaborative, coordinated management and exchange of clinical data across the care spectrum and through effective practice management that improves revenue cycle management. More than 18,000 client organizations, including 350,000 care providers and more than 40 state systems, use Netsmart products to help improve the quality of life for tens of millions of people each year. Netsmart clients include mental health and substance use treatment agencies, psychiatric hospitals, private and group mental health practices, public health departments, social services and child and family health agencies, vital records offices, and managed care organizations. Netsmart's products are full-featured information systems that operate on a variety of operating systems, hardware platforms, and mobile devices, and offer unlimited scalability.

Netsmart provides the solutions and expertise that help its clients meet all the criteria for Meaningful Use of an Electronic Health Record (EHR) under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) of 2009.

Netsmart clients can also create a complete connected care environment encompassing e-prescribing and order entry, sharing clinical information and lab results, and using Web portals to provide secure and private consumer access to care information.

For information about Netsmart's full range of solutions for health and human services organizations, visit www.ntst.com or call 1-800-472-5509. Also follow us on Twitter, like us on Facebook and visit us on YouTube.

SOURCE Netsmart Technologies