In an attempt to optimize operational efficiencies and improve patient outcome, Resmed Inc.'s (RMD) AirView compliance management platform will henceforth share data related to sleep apnea patients with FairView Health Services' Epic EHR system.

This data integration aims at an efficient workflow, lower healthcare costs and improved responsiveness to therapy which will allow physicians to make better clinical decisions.

Despite this positive news, Resmed's share price dropped 0.8% to eventually close at $52.10 yesterday.

Sleep apnea is a common medical condition which causes one's breathing to shallow down or even stop for a few seconds or more, during sleep. Physicians mostly treat patients with positive airway pressure (:PAP) therapy, which keeps the airway open to prevent apnea events from recurring.

Post-integration of ResMed's AirView with Fairview's Epic EHR, clinicians will be able to access patient PAP therapy data within their EHR system. This will save on time as they will no longer need to log in to multiple patient management systems to view patient outcomes.

This data integration solution has generated a secure patient data warehouse, which has the potential to support advanced analytics like the impact of sleep apnea on comorbid conditions like heart failure, diabetes, and hypertension.

Per management at Resmed, this integration will also enhance its hospital-to-home strategy for both respiratory care and cardiorespiratory patients, since device data for these conditions can now be presented within an EHR. This should also minimize the operative labor of healthcare service providers, giving them adequate time to attend to more patients.

Overall, this will benefit the entire healthcare system through improved patient outcomes, lesser expenses and maximization of resources.

No financial terms of this integration pact has been disclosed yet. Nevertheless, the announcement adds one more name to Resmed's large customer portfolio. Reasonably, we can expect this technology integration to be accretive to Resmed's growth in the coming quarters.

Currently, ResMed carries a Zacks Rank #4 (Sell). Better-ranked stocks in the medical products industry include ICU Medical, Inc. (ICUI), Abaxis, Inc. (ABAX) and Conatus Pharmaceuticals Inc. (CNAT). While ICU Medical sports a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), both Abaxis and Conatus hold a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).

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