Vree Health Launches EngageAdvantage™ to Help Improve Patient Outcomes

WHITEHOUSE STATION, N.J., Sept. 10, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Vree Health, a company that combines technology with direct personal interaction to influence positive behavioral change and help improve patient outcomes, today announced the launch of its EngageAdvantage™ platform.

The EngageAdvantage platform is designed to help healthcare providers lower costs, improve patient outcomes, and optimize resources and communication across the entire care team. EngageAdvantage integrates patient healthcare information, personalized follow-up care plans developed by the patient's healthcare provider, and specially trained care liaisons (who are not healthcare professionals) to help healthcare systems optimize the delivery of care, and to help motivate  patients in the management of their own health.  EngageAdvantage is the foundation for Vree Health's offerings and supports the company's strategic direction to help improve the health of populations through better connections across patients, providers, and payers.

Through the integration and coordination of patient information across the healthcare team, healthcare providers are better able to see through the blind spots created when patients leave the healthcare setting. 

"Involved patients and integrated information help healthcare providers better understand patient behavior and health status once a patient leaves the healthcare setting," said Kyle Dolbow, president, Vree Health.  "As the U.S. moves toward an accountable, value based healthcare system, population health management and improving patient outcomes are crucial."

One key component in this effort is adherence to a care plan.  In a Vree Health pilot currently underway with Griffin Hospital in Derby, CT, a post-program survey showed that 95% of enrolled patients who completed the Vree Health program indicated that it helped them stay on track with their recovery plan.

Through EngageAdvantage, healthcare providers, patients and caregivers have access to up to date information.  In addition to technology based care management tools, the solution provides care liaisons, who help monitor, motivate, and support patients, while also facilitating and coordinating follow-up care. EngageAdvantage can be customized to help manage challenges related to readmission reduction. According to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, nearly one in four Medicare patients today is readmitted to the hospital within 30 days following a diagnosis, adding billions to healthcare costs.

Vree Health Announces Customer Award Recognition

Vree Health also announced that Griffin Hospital was selected as a finalist for the 5^th annual Dorland Health Case in Point Platinum Awards.  This award recognizes successful and innovative case management programs that improve healthcare across the care continuum.  Griffin Hospital partnered with Vree Health as part of the hospital's initiative to reduce the rates of 30-day readmissions.  Griffin Hospital and Vree Health were recognized as Finalists in the transition of care program (acute) category.

About Vree Health

Vree Health™ LLC, a subsidiary of Merck Sharp & Dohme Corp., is dedicated to helping healthcare organizations influence positive behavioral change and improve patient outcomes with technology-enabled services designed to improve the reach, cost-efficiency and efficacy of healthcare.  Our innovative EngageAdvantage™ technology platform and high-touch services are designed to help coordinate care across providers; aggregate, analyze, and effectively utilize disparate data sources; and engage patients and their families in actively managing patient care. To learn more, visit www.vreehealth.com.

About Merck

Today's Merck is a global healthcare leader working to help the world be well. Merck is known as MSD outside the United States and Canada. Through our prescription medicines, vaccines, biologic therapies, and consumer care and animal health products, we work with customers and operate in more than 140 countries to deliver innovative health solutions. We also demonstrate our commitment to increasing access to healthcare through far-reaching policies, programs and partnerships.  For more information, visit www.merck.com and connect with us on Twitter, Facebook and YouTube.

About Griffin Hospital

Griffin Hospital, located in Derby, CT, is a 160-bed acute care community hospital serving more than 107,000 residents of the Lower Naugatuck Valley Region of the state. As the flagship hospital of the Planetree Organization, an international leader in patient-centered care, Griffin Hospital has received national recognition for creating a facility and approach to patient care that is responsive to the needs of patients. Many healthcare facilities around the world send visitors to Griffin Hospital and incorporate its concepts into their healthcare models. Griffin Hospital is a not-for-profit, tax-exempt subsidiary of the Griffin Health Services Corporation.

Forward-Looking Statement

This news release includes "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the safe harbor provisions of the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These statements are based upon the current beliefs and expectations of Merck's management and are subject to significant risks and uncertainties. If underlying assumptions prove inaccurate or risks or uncertainties materialize, actual results may differ materially from those set forth in the forward-looking statements.

Risks and uncertainties include but are not limited to, general industry conditions and competition; general economic factors, including interest rate and currency exchange rate fluctuations; the impact of pharmaceutical industry regulation and health care legislation in the United States and internationally; global trends toward health care cost containment; technological advances, new products and patents attained by competitors; challenges inherent in new product development, including obtaining regulatory approval; Merck's ability to accurately predict future market conditions; manufacturing difficulties or delays; financial instability of international economies and sovereign risk; dependence on the effectiveness of Merck's patents and other protections for innovative products; and the exposure to litigation, including patent litigation, and/or regulatory actions.

Merck undertakes no obligation to publicly update any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. Additional factors that could cause results to differ materially from those described in the forward-looking statements can be found in Merck's 2013 Annual Report on Form 10-K and the company's other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) available at the SEC's Internet site (www.sec.gov).

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SOURCE Vree Health