Emis, which is currently privately owned, hopes to raise around £50m through its share placement on London's Alternative Investment Market. It said it plans to launch Emis Web, a service for shared electronic health records held at its own data centres, later this year.
The move will see the firm competing with suppliers of patient record systems outside its speciality of GP practices, where it dominates the market, counting 52% of GPs with 34m patient records as clients. The product could also fit with Conservative plans to allow patients in England to control their own online health records.
The firm is already introducing Emis Web in Tower Hamlets in London, Liverpool and Gateshead. The company said that this has helped reduce waiting times for minor surgery from an average of nine months to, in some cases, same day appointments. The company wants to sell the product to primary care and multidisciplinary teams.
"In the UK, we see Emis Web as a key component in the future of NHS IT because it enables healthcare practitioners to deliver quicker, better patient care through the sharing of key patient information between different healthcare teams," said chief executive Sean Riddell.
"Emis Web is a core part of our strategy and will provide us with both organic growth and acquisition opportunities as we continue to develop its potential across the whole healthcare spectrum – including primary, secondary and community care settings."
"This shows Emis' desire to cement its position within the software sector of the health care market," said Chris Pennell, a senior analyst at Kable, adding that the funds raised would give it the ability to develop its current products and provide staff incentives through shares and share options.
"There is clearly an opportunity for suppliers who can fill the gaps between the differing service delivery channels within the health sector in a cost-effective manner, something the Emis is trying to achieve through its Emis Web offering," Pennell added.
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