Change Healthcare on Wednesday announced that it had acquired the Nucleus.io medical imaging platform, a product of San Diego-based NucleusHealth.

The company says it will use Nucleus.io's technology to complete its own medical imaging platform and will leverage the more than 7,500 organizations Nucleus.io serves. The acquisition will speed Change's time line for implementing cloud-based, end-to-end software for its own Change Healthcare Enterprise Imaging Network, officials said.

According to Change, the combination of technologies and teams will streamline the diagnostic and collaboration process for physicians and improve outcomes through the use of artificial intelligence. 

"Now more than ever, customers are seeking ways to lower cost, reduce complexity, protect their patient data, and deliver the best care possible," said Tracy Byers, senior vice president and general manager for enterprise imaging, Change Healthcare, in a statement.

"This transaction will accelerate the realization of our vision and the innovation our industry has been waiting for."

WHY IT MATTERS

Nucleus.io is a product of San Diego-based NucleusHealth, which focuses on medical image management and interpretation. Users can upload images from CD, DVD, USB sticks, folders, PACS and web portals, and can de-identify and overwrite fields on upload.

They can also access current and prior exams, or interface directly with electronic health records to view exams, in addition to sharing exams with peers and patients.

"We began our journey eight years ago with the goal of improving patient care by using the power of the web to make medical imaging instantly accessible to patients, providers, and hospitals," said NucleusHealth CEO Dr. Vishal Verma in a statement. 

"We are very excited about the opportunity to have Change Healthcare acquire the Nucleus.io technology and team," said said Claude Hooton, NucleusHealth president and COO, in an email to Healthcare IT News. "We felt that an organization with their reputation, resources, and customer focus was what was needed to take medical image management to the cloud using the amazing Nucleus.io technology. We will continue to operate under the corporate name of NucleusHealth."

The Change Healthcare Enterprise Imaging Network, meanwhile, is a fully managed software-as-a-service that enables the migration of medical imaging to the cloud.

THE LARGER TREND

Change Healthcare has been expanding its foothold into the imaging landscape for years. In 2017, it extended a strategic partnership with Google Cloud to develop new tools for radiologists and other professionals.

And in December 2019, it announced continued momentum for its Enterprise Imaging Network, with four health systems at the time signing on as development partners: Bronson Healthcare; Community Health Systems Professional Services; Montefiore Nyack Hospital; and University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health and UW Health, Madison, Wisconsin.

"From the time we first partnered with Google Cloud, we've focused on building a solution that doesn't simply replicate traditional on-premise systems, but delivers everything providers expect in an enterprise imaging service – plus clinical and operational capabilities that are only available through a true cloud-native SaaS platform," said Tomer Levy, general manager, cloud solutions at Change.

ON THE RECORD

"Change Healthcare was the clear choice when searching for an organization to deliver our technology to the world," said Nucleus Health CEO Verma. "We couldn't be happier about the opportunity to have Change Healthcare bring our unified vision to light."

Kat Jercich is senior editor of Healthcare IT News.
Twitter: @kjercich
Healthcare IT News is a HIMSS Media publication.