New Kindred Partnership Announced

LOUISVILLE, Ky. and OVERLAND PARK, Kan. (December 18, 2018)—Kindred Healthcare LLC and Netsmart have partnered to create what the companies say is a unique, technology-driven clinical platform that surpasses the traditional boundaries of electronic medical records and aligns with the needs of the evolving value-based care environment.

Through the Kindred Netsmart partnership, the companies expect to build and support integrated post-acute solutions, improve care outcomes and address gaps in patient care. The companies will combine teams from both organizations and utilize the Netsmart portfolio of enterprise solutions. Leveraging these solutions and Kindred’s longstanding experience in long-term acute care hospitals, rehabilitation and care management, the partnership will create a clinical platform that meets the distinct requirements of aging services and post-acute care, according to company press. 

Together, Kindred and Netsmart expect to rapidly expand the functionality of Kindred’s existing proprietary medical records solutions to address needs in information exchange and care coordination at Kindred’s LTAC hospitals, inpatient rehabilitation hospitals and Lacuna Health, a nationwide provider of registered nurse-led care engagement solutions. The combination of teams will begin immediately and expect to start deploying the solutions over the next several months.

“As a leader in the use of EMRs in LTAC hospitals, we recognize the need to adapt as the health care industry quickly moves to a value-based care model,” said Benjamin A. Breier, Kindred’s president and chief executive officer, via press release. “Netsmart has a proven track record of innovation, experience connecting major acute care hospitals with post-acute services and a shared vision of future health care needs. Together, we will have more than 2,500 years of post-acute and software development experience and be well positioned to create a next generation, fully integrated post-acute platform.”

Charlie Wardrip, Kindred’s chief information officer, cited emphasis and commitment to developing clinical, rehabilitation and care management innovations and solutions for the most medically-complex patients.

“As we combine the resources and expertise of our two organizations, our collaboration with Netsmart will strengthen our ability to provide coordinated, quality-driven patient care across the continuum. We look forward to working with Netsmart to capitalize on this unique opportunity,” Wardrip added. 

“This partnership advances our objective of developing a clinical platform for providers that are integrated with post-acute care,” said Netsmart CEO Mike Valentine. “These provider organizations require comprehensive platforms built to meet their unique needs, and we look forward to addressing that market opportunity by collaborating with Kindred. This partnership has the potential to advance the entire market and we couldn’t be more excited about the opportunity to work with Kindred in this effort.” 

Kindred Healthcare LLC is a health care services company based in Louisville, Kentucky, with annual revenues of approximately $3.3 billion, according to the company. At Sept. 30, 2018, Kindred through its subsidiaries had approximately 37,400 employees providing health care services in 1,894 locations in 45 states, including 74 long-term acute care hospitals, 22 inpatient rehabilitation hospitals, 11 sub-acute units, 98 inpatient rehabilitation units (hospital-based) and contract rehabilitation service businesses which served 1,689 nonaffiliated sites of service. 

For 50 years, Netsmart has been committed to providing a common platform to integrate care. By leveraging the Netsmart network, care providers can seamlessly and securely integrate information across communities, collaborate on the most effective treatments and improve outcomes for those in their care. 

For more information, visit ntst.com and kindredhealthcare.com.