University of Pittsburgh Medical Center collaborates with GE Healthcare to develop international oncology centers

To help meet the growing demand for treatment, UPMC has signed a collaboration agreement with GE Healthcare to develop cancer centers internationally.

The goal is to bring advanced diagnostic and treatment capabilities to facilities that provide convenient access for patients. These centers are expected to be comprehensive cancer centers providing medical and surgical oncology, radiation, and ancillary radiology and laboratory services.

The Middle East region is considered home to one of the fastest growing healthcare infrastructures. Healthcare providers are facing increasing demand for more and better quality services from patients and enhanced performance and profitability from shareholders.

The spread of awareness about the importance of quality healthcare delivery and increased knowledge about the different disease areas is vital in helping improve the standard of healthcare in the region.

Healthcare demand in general will rise 240% in the GCC region over the next 20 years, with health risk factors, ageing, population growth and medical inflation contributing to the rise in spending as was highlighted by Dr. Ioan Cleaton Jones, a Senior Health Specialist in the Health and Education Department of the International Finance Corporation (IFC), a member of the World Bank Group, at the GE Healthcare Middle East 2008 Media Summit, Dubai.

In response to this spending increase, the total number of hospital beds is projected to rise from 68,250 in 2006 to 114,450 by 2015 and 161,750 by 2025. McKinsey & Co recently modeled disease trends in the six Gulf Cooperation Council countries and projected these figures.

World-renowned for its cancer care, UPMC already operates one of the largest cancer programs in the U.S., with 42 cancer centers in western Pennsylvania. It also manages two cancer centers in Ireland - UPMC Whitfield Cancer Centre in Waterford and Beacon Cancer Centre in Dublin.

GE Healthcare will provide medical equipment and services to the new cancer centers, as well as the international expertise that it has developed while operating in more than 100 countries.

"By working with global partners such as GE Healthcare, UPMC will bring the most advanced cancer care more quickly to patients who often wait months for access to advanced treatments,"

said Charles Bogosta, executive vice president, UPMC, and president, International and Commercial Services Division.

"We expect to develop at least 25 cancer centers in Europe and the Middle East over the next decade. At the community level, cancer poses considerable challenges for the health care systems in poor and rich countries alike."

As part of this collaboration, GE Healthcare will conduct assessments to determine which markets are most appropriate for cancer centers. Key factors will include the availability of a suitable local partner, regulatory requirements, and patient volumes.

Once a market is selected, UPMC will negotiate definitive agreements and take responsibility with local partners for the construction, ownership, and operation of the centers.

Employment at each center will depend on the size and scope of services to be determined in talks with local partners. Medical directors and managers are likely to be UPMC employees. The employment status of others will depend on local labor regulations and other factors.

"Our aim is to bring quality care to developing and developed regions of the world and to enable the transformation of health care delivery," says Reinaldo Garcia, president and CEO, GE Healthcare EMEA. "We are pleased to support UPMC's worthy initiative to improve access with earlier diagnosis, accurate follow-up, and a proactive early-health model of care."

UPMC's collaboration with GE is part of the health system's larger strategy of commercializing its medical, technology, and management expertise for the benefit of patients.

The two organizations worked together to create Omnyx LLC to develop and market digital pathology systems, a technology that will allow doctors to store and display digital images of human tissue from microscope glass slides.

Both UPMC and GE will exhibit at the Arab Health Conference held in Dubai in January 26-29, 2009.