Diversinet Strengthens Military Healthcare IT Expertise with Two Executive Advisory Board Appointments
Dr. Hon Pak and Fred Hannett Named to Help Diversinet Build upon Success of MobiSecure Technology with U.S. Army’s mCare Program
TORONTO, Sept. 28, 2011 – Diversinet Corp. (TSX Venture: DIV, OTCBB: DVNTF), a leader in “Connected and Protected” mobile healthcare communications, has appointed to its executive advisory board two experts in healthcare technology issues and applications related to the United States Department of Defense (DoD):
- Dr. Hon Pak, previous President of the American Telemedicine Association and recently retired Chief Information Officer of the U.S. Army Medical Department, Office of the Surgeon General
- Frederick J. Hannett, a Washington-based consultant and healthcare IT thought leader with longstanding ties to the DoD, as well as founder and Managing Principal of The Capitol Alliance
“Dr. Pak and Fred Hannett greatly strengthen our executive advisory board,” said Diversinet Chairman and CEO Albert Wahbe. “Their outstanding accomplishments and extensive leadership experience in large-scale healthcare delivery systems bring us well-informed guidance and insight as we build upon our success with the U.S. Army’s mCare program.”
mCare is a telehealth outreach program established for members of the military recovering from mild traumatic brain injuries and other wounds. The program leverages a HIPAA-compliant mobile phone application based on Diversinet’s MobiSecure® technology, which enables daily two-way secure communication between patients and Army healthcare professionals.
Following an extensive pilot program, the Army engaged Diversinet under a five-year contract to support mCare’s expansion. A mobile platform will be critical to enable patient-centered care in the military healthcare system, especially as the Army implements a patient-centered medical home model throughout the enterprise.
“Now that we’ve demonstrated the value of MobiSecure for the U.S. military,” Wahbe said, “we will be seeking guidance from our new advisers to strategically expand our presence and market share in both the federal and commercial spaces.”
Dr. Pak served as President of the American Telemedicine Association, leading the effort on global health and standards development for telehealth. Previously, he headed the Advanced Information Technology Group within the Telemedicine and Advanced Technology Research Center, which served as the DoD’s health IT research and development arm.
He is recognized for developing a comprehensive informatics infrastructure and a health IT strategy around patient-centered care. Dr. Pak shaped a federal investment in electronic health record exchanges and health information technology for active military, veteran and civilian populations.
Hannett has an extensive understanding and knowledge base in the health delivery programs of the DoD, Veterans Affairs and other governmental departments. He spent more than 12 years at the DoD, culminating with his appointment as Budget Director and Legislative Advisor to the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Health Affairs.
He is currently Vice Chair of the Public Policy Steering Committee of the Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society (HIMSS) and a board member of the Institute of Federal Health Care.
Members of the executive advisory board provide strategic direction to Diversinet and help refine the company’s vision, while also helping to identify opportunities for its MobiSecure product line in government, pharmaceutical and other healthcare organizations.
Alan Portela, the advisory board’s chairman, is an mHealth strategist and innovator. He is currently CEO of AirStrip Technologies and a member of Diversinet’s board of directors. The advisory board’s fourth member is Mark Trigsted, Diversinet’s Executive Vice President for Healthcare.
About Diversinet
Diversinet Corp. (TSX Venture: DIV, OTCBB: DVNTF) provides patented and proven secure products that enable healthcare organizations to rapidly deploy HIPAA-compliant mobile healthcare (mHealth) applications to anyone, anytime, anywhere, on mobile devices. Diversinet’s MobiSecure® application addresses the increasing need for secure messaging, as well as safe, convenient, on-the-go storage and sharing of personal health data. Learn more about how Diversinet is delivering “Healthcare. Connected and Protected” at www.diversinet.com.
The Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and Canadian securities laws provide a “safe harbour” for forward-looking statements. Certain information included in this press release (as well as information included in oral statements or other written statements made or to be made by the company) contains statements that are forward-looking, such as statements relating to the success of current product offerings. Such forward-looking information involves important risks and uncertainties that could significantly affect anticipated results in the future and, accordingly, such results may differ materially from those expressed in any forward-looking statements made by or on behalf of the company. For a description of additional risks and uncertainties, please refer to the company’s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission available at www.sec.gov and Canadian securities regulatory authorities available at www.sedar.com.
The TSX Venture Exchange has not reviewed and does not accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.
MobiSecure is a registered trademark of Diversinet Corp.
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