Varian Announces 10-year Transformational Oncology Collaboration with Ballad Health to Bring Advanced Treatment Solutions to Rural Communities

• 10-year agreement builds on long-standing relationship between Varian and Ballad Health to improve clinical outcomes and drive value across the health system, ensuring world-class care regardless of location.
• Investment by Ballad Health underscores commitment to expanding access to advanced technology to patients and regional healthcare professionals.
• Commitment includes purchase of hardware, software, digital solutions, and Advanced Oncology Solutions Professional and Clinical Services.

Varian, a Siemens Healthineers company, announced a 10-year agreement with Ballad Health, to bring advanced oncology treatment services to serve patients in rural communities across the Appalachian Highlands in Northeast Tennessee, Southwest Virginia, northwestern North Carolina, and southeastern Kentucky.

The transformational oncology collaboration with the Johnson City, Tennessee-based health system, is designed to deliver advanced treatment technology through a highly integrated digital network across Ballad Health by accelerating the patient journey from screening to survivorship.

“As part of Siemens Healthineers, Varian is committed to expanding access to world-class quality care, for everyone, everywhere,” said Arthur Kaindl, Head of Varian. “We’re excited to help Ballad Health implement advanced radiotherapy solutions and services, providing its care teams with the technology to deliver world-class care to its patients.”

The agreement, one of the largest in Varian’s history, includes a portfolio of products and services supporting a unified oncology ecosystem. Using Varian’s ARIA CORE oncology management solution and the Varian Executive Partnership program, care teams across Ballad Health will be able to access greater visibility into patient data to gain deeper insights needed to deliver more personalized care.

To optimize its technology implementation and support adoption, Ballad Health team members and clinicians will leverage Varian’s Advanced Oncology Solutions (AOS) Professional Services to provide operational support and consulting services to best serve its patient population for the entirety of the agreement. In addition to consulting services, Varian’s AOS team will also provide professional services for medical physics and dosimetry.

"This agreement highlights our natural evolution as a care delivery leader for rural areas and our ability to make advanced care accessible and available for people in the communities we serve,” said Alan Levine, Ballad Health Chairman and Chief Executive. “This investment, coupled with other capital projects in the coming years, cement Ballad Health and its facilities as a top choice in healthcare – for patients, team members and clinicians alike.”

Varian has been working with facilities within Ballad Health, a not-for-profit health system comprising 20 hospitals, post-acute care and behavioral health services, and a large multi-specialty group physician practice, for more than 25 years. The new, decade-long collaboration includes eight TrueBeam linear accelerators and one Ethos adaptive radiotherapy system to be delivered to six sites in Tennessee and Virginia, enabling Ballad Health to accelerate its schedule to implement newer linac technology.

ARIA CORE, a cloud-based system, will replace a series of separate, localized systems to provide a holistic view of patient information. The Varian Executive Partnership program will support implementation of streamlined, consistent workflows, and access to actionable data insights. Upgrades to the Eclipse treatment planning platform will enable next generation advanced planning to deliver more consistent, tighter control and higher quality plans than versions currently in place.

Under the agreement, Varian will also support a technology roadmap, enabling Ballad Health to adapt to future technology advancements, including the flexibility to select different system configurations, installation dates, and sites as market needs change. In addition to support for technology enablement, Varian will provide market analytics and gap analyses to support Ballad Health in making informed technology decisions.

© 2024 Varian Medical Systems, Inc. All rights reserved. VARIAN, ARIA CORE, ECLIPSE, ETHOS, and TRUEBEAM are trademarks of Varian Medical Systems, Inc., pending or registered U.S. Pat. & Tm. Off.

About Varian

At Varian, a Siemens Healthineers company, we envision a world without fear of cancer. For more than 75 years, Varian has developed, built, and delivered innovative technologies and solutions that help care providers around the globe treat millions of patients each year. Today, as a Siemens Healthineers company, we support every step of the cancer care journey – from screening to survivorship. From advanced imaging and radiation therapy to comprehensive software and services, to interventional radiology, we are harnessing the power of our perspective while also pursuing clinical research to create a more efficient, and more personalized care pathway. Because, for cancer patients everywhere, their fight is our fight. For more information, visit https://www.varian.com.

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