Press Release

Agfa Media Relations Office ? 416-241-1110, ext. 4008 ? 416-614-2260 ? 77 Belfield Road, , ON M9W 1G6? [email protected]

New Agfa IMPAX Installation to Radically Improve Patient Care Across Northern Communities

“Made in the North" Solution Creates the Largest Regional Picture Archiving and Communication System (PACS) in -

Toronto, ON - April 16, 2002 - Agfa Inc., 's leading supplier of diagnostic imaging products and services, today announced the signing of a major multi-million dollar contract to install and service a fully-integrated PACS (picture archiving and communication system) in nine networked hospitals. The project, referred to as NORrad, will improve access to specialty care for patients living in rural and remote communities by digitizing and connecting diagnostic image data among nine community hospitals.

NORrad will be the largest regional multi-site PACS installation in North America, covering nearly 150,000 square kilometers, serving community hospitals in , Hearst, , Kirkland Lake, Cochrane, , Matheson, Moose and , Ontario.

"NORrad is a made-in -the-North solution responding effectively to the unique challenges of distance, weather and a limited numbers of health professionals, and will serve as the single most important development to improve and enhance patient care throughout our region," stated Dr. Claude Vézina, the Director of Diagnostic Imaging for the NORrad hospitals. "The increased ability to make a diagnosis using IMPAX will save lives, increase the ability to provide care closer to home, and avoid unnecessary and expensive air ambulance evacuations," said Dr. Vézina.

IMPAX increases access to specialty care for rural patients and significantly reduces the need for patient and physician travel between hospitals. Without IMPAX, patients in northeastern Ontario must commute to Timmins & District Hospital for a wide range of diagnostic tests. Travel times range from 45 minutes to 5 hours. In addition, more than one-third of local specialists in Timmins travel to other communities to provide care, traveling an average of 230 kilometers per trip.

-more-

Another issue faced by Northern Ontario hospitals is the persistent shortage of physicians, particularly radiologists. By enhancing the flow of medical information, IMPAX will assist in the recruitment and retention of physicians and health professionals, increasing the level of support for primary care physicians in smaller regional centers and decreasing professional isolation.

IMPAX enables regional hospitals to increase their efficiency by leveraging existing resources within the network and streamlining procedures. Significant benefits will be achieved through improved organizational efficiency and the elimination of film purchases. The NORad project facilitates the uniform delivery of health care services across the region and province, and enhances access to medical care in presently under-serviced areas.

"Agfa's expertise in developing and installing hundreds of similar systems across North America, will enable NORrad to play a vital role in the Northern Ontario healthcare system and the lives of its residents," said Michael Green, vice president, technical imaging, Agfa Inc. "We are thrilled to be providing our technology to a large group of hospitals that have thoroughly evaluated all of the options and have selected Agfa because of its demonstrated leadership in delivering tangible patient care benefits."

Each of the nine hospitals will receive a complete Agfa IMPAX system including Computer Radiography as well as digital diagnostic and clinical review workstations and voice recognition dictation software to streamline medical procedures and provide patients with improved healthcare services. IMPAX will facilitate the complete spectrum of digital patient diagnosis, making information available within seconds to every networked review station within each NORrad hospital and to doctors' offices. The system will be connected to all modalities including x-ray, ultrasound, cardiology, nuclear medicine, Computed Tomography and Magnetic Resonance Imaging. Each of the NORrad hospitals will be connected with a dedicated high- speed broadband ATM network demonstrating the capability of IMPAX to interconnect with major telecommunication solutions.

The IMPAX installations are set to commence May 2002, with an expected completion for the entire platform within 5 months. The nine sites are to be fully networked, with the Timmins & District Hospital acting as the central repository, housing the system's core archive and database. Full clinical deployment is expected by October 2002.

Ab out IMPAX Technology Agfa's PACS solution known as IMPAX, allows for x-rays, ultrasounds, and images from digital fluoroscopy and nuclear medicine to be digitally recorded, viewed on a monitor, transmitted to different areas of the hospital for consultation, and archived, eliminating traditional film-based imaging.

-more-

Prior to IMPAX, patient diagnosis and treatment were done using traditional film-based imaging. Delays in diagnosis often occurred as patients waited for images to be processed and transported from radiology to their primary care physicians. With IMPAX, healthcare providers can now access images and radiology reports remotely, reducing the amount of time patients spend anxiously waiting for medical results and diagnoses. All software for the IMPAX system are products of Mitra, a wholly owned company of Agfa, located in Waterloo, Ontario.

In addition to IMPAX, each hospital will receive Agfa technology, which creates a patient ID known as the master patient index (MPI). The MPI facilitates communication between various hospital information systems, internally and across the nine sites. This is the first step towards the goal of developing an Electronic Patient Record (EPR), which will enable medical professionals to store, record, and share all patient information including x-ray's and diagnostic information in an electronic file across all medical departments within a hospital's network.

About Agfa Agfa is a leading global manufacturer of imaging products and systems, with annual worldwide sales of CAN $8 billion, and headquarters in Europe. Agfa manufactures and markets products and systems for a variety of imaging markets including amateur and professional photography, electronic and photographic prepress, and medical and technical diagnostic imaging. In Canada, Agfa is based in Toronto with offices in Montreal and Vancouver. Agfa can be found on the Internet at www.agfa.ca .

-30- For more information please contact:

For Agfa Kimberley Elliott Erin Sufrin Agfa Inc. Fleishman Hillard Product Manager, HealthCare (416) 214-0701 ext. 230 (416) 241-1110, ext. 4008 [email protected] [email protected]

For NORrad Dr. Claude Vézina Director of Diagnostic Imaging Timmins & District Hospital (705) 360-6069 [email protected]