Mediware Becomes WellSky

LENEXA, Kan. (Sept. 11, 2018)—After more than a decade of strategic acquisitions and nearly 40 years of software and service development, Mediware Information Systems, Inc., has become WellSky.

The company announced the new company concept, name and branding at its CareForum 2018 User Conference in San Antonio, Texas. A portfolio company of TPG Capital, WellSky represents the mergers, knowledge and experience of more than 30 unique health care and human services brands.

CEO Bill Miller, who has led the transformation since taking his position in July 2017, after years of service at Optum and Cerner, said the decision to move Mediware to WellSky was made about eight months ago.

“We’ve made five acquisitions over the past 15 months and as we got into 2018, we started to ask ourselves what would be the benefit of rebranding and establishing a new anchor and a new name in a really fragmented part of the industry,” Miller said. “The more we looked at everything we had, and how big we had become, and how wide and how deep our portfolio had become, we wanted to make ourselves simpler to our clients; make sure they understood everything we did and create simplicity—WellSky accomplishes that.”

The company’s latest acquisitions have all been game changers for Mediware, Miller said, but he pointed to Kinnser, which firmly established Mediware in the home health and hospice space. Miller also cited gains in analytics, business intelligence, revenue cycle management, consulting and education.

The name “WellSky” conveys both the company’s vision to elevate the quality of care through innovation and the breadth of its offerings across the continuum of care, including solutions and services for blood banks, home health agencies, hospices, rehab facilities, Area Agencies on Aging, and many others, according Mediware’s press statement.

“Our clients are taking care of some of the most disadvantaged and neglected people in our entire population, and the care settings they deliver care in have so much potential and so much benefit,” Miller said. “These ancillary care settings deserve a lot of attention. I would call our clients the unsung heroes of our health economy.

“We stand at the forefront of innovation that will eliminate the fragmentation that exists in health and community care,” Miller said. “Our customers face pressure to improve care delivery to every person they serve…and we all have to prioritize wellness.”

WellSky solutions support providers across four key settings of care: hospitals, homes, practices and facilities, and the community. By integrating its offerings under one brand, the company says it is better positioned to partner with providers and organizations to create and sustain communities that thrive. WellSky’s technologies aim to enable health and human services providers to scale their service delivery efficiently—to manage costs and provide care for more people while also improving quality. 

As increased regulation, provider consolidation and value-based reimbursement drive rapid change in health care and human services, WellSky plans to invest nearly $50 million toward research and development.

According to the company, WellSky serves more than 10,000 customer sites, including the nation’s largest hospital systems, post-acute care franchises, state agencies, and human services organizations. Its customers are based in the United States, as well as Canada, Ireland, Britain, South Africa, Holland, Belgium, Norway, Lebanon and Singapore.

For more information, visit wellsky.com.