Acquisition Adds Best-in-Class Hospice Training into Relias’ Industry Leading Senior Care Portfolio
CARY, NC, January 6, 2014 – Relias Learning, the leader in online learning content and learning management systems for the senior care industry, announced today that it has completed the acquisition of the Hospice Education Network (HEN) from the principals of Weatherbee Resources. The acquisition adds over 160 hospice and palliative care courses to Relias Learning’s offerings and builds on the company’s position as the preeminent provider of training to the North American senior care industry. Weatherbee Resources will continue providing regulatory products and services for hospices and will work closely with Relias in the ongoing strategy and development of training programs for the industry.
HEN was launched in 2007 as the Weatherbee Resources team recognized the critical importance of training and continuing education for hospice and palliative care providers. The nation’s leading provider of hospice regulatory consulting, Weatherbee provides an array of services to help hospice programs manage operational and regulatory challenges. HEN’s educational offerings cover a wide range of topics including administration, patient/family care and leadership. Over 1,000 organizations and 95,000 healthcare professionals have used HEN to enhance their skills and meet their training needs.
“This was a tremendous opportunity for Relias and our Senior Care customers,” said Jim Triandiflou, Chief Executive Officer of Relias Learning. “The Hospice Education Network has been a leader in their field and provides a wealth of knowledge, content and support to the hospice industry. Adding these resources to the Relias portfolio ensures that we have the very best content across the full continuum of senior care and can meet all of the industry’s training needs. Both Relias and HEN have been committed to creating world-class content solutions and support for the senior care industry, and we are excited about bringing these two leaders together.”
The combined company’s online learning solutions and content will serve more than 4,000 organizations and nearly 2 million professionals with the most comprehensive content library and tracking mechanisms available in the market. The combined client base spans all facets of senior care from home health and hospice, to skilled nursing facilities to large multi-facility organizations, CCRCs, assisted living providers, and therapy and rehabilitation providers.
Weatherbee Resources founder and CEO Heather Wilson also expressed her enthusiasm. “The Hospice Education Network was created to meet our industry’s training needs while leveraging the vast knowledge and experience of Weatherbee Resources. Finding an online learning company which already knew our industry and was committed to working with us to support hospice professionals was key to our decision. With Relias Learning, our customers will have access to a world class learning management system to supplement their existing hospice content. We are pleased that this acquisition includes the opportunity to work together on course content and strategic partnerships and we look forward to a very long-term relationship.”
About Weatherbee Resources
Since 1997, Weatherbee has developed and provided products and services exclusively for the hospice industry. Weatherbee’s team has a passion for hospice care and is committed to preserving the Medicare Hospice Benefit and improving patient/family outcomes at the end of life. Called upon to conduct forensic clinical record audits and often testify on behalf of hospice providers, the Weatherbee team can assist hospices in every stage of their compliance planning and implementation. In addition to consulting, hundreds of hospices across the country rely on Weatherbee for its educational offerings including the renowned Hospice Regulatory Boot Camps and regulatory and strategic operational content created for the Hospice Education Network.
About Relias
Relias provides lifelong workforce enablement solutions for 12,000 healthcare and human services organizations and 4.5 million caregivers to drive measurable outcomes. Customers use Relias solutions to attract and retain talent, elevate care quality and reduce risk with our technology, services, community, and expertise. The Relias family of brands — Nurse.com, Wound Care Education Institute, Relias Academy, FreeCME, and Relias Media — serves the entire healthcare community and shares a common goal of improving the lives of the most vulnerable members of society and those who care for them.
