Critical Signal Technologies acquires GTL

Sep 17 2009

Critical Signal Technologies, Inc. (CST) has acquired the stock and assets of GTL, Inc. dba as "Link to Life" along with Link Technologies, Inc., and will integrate its product and service offerings into CST to provide cost-effective personal emergency response, TeleHealth and medical monitoring systems, improving the independence and quality of life for older adults, the disabled and people managing health conditions.

CST President and CEO Jeffrey Prough made the announcement at the Pittsfield, Mass. headquarters of Link to Life. The terms of the agreement between the two privately-held companies were not disclosed.

"This acquisition will help us make people's lives easier," said Prough. "Our products and services help older adults and people managing illness and disease live with more independence and dignity. We look forward to offering even more cost-effective solutions to people's health and wellness challenges as a result of this acquisition."

Link to Life's primary product portfolio focuses on medication management and medical alert systems, more commonly known as Personal Emergency Response Systems, which connect users to a 24-hour response center upon the push of a button during a medical emergency. CST's offerings include Personal Emergency Response Systems that summon help during a fall or medical emergency; Medication Management Systems that ensure proper dispensing of prescribed medications over a multi-day period; TeleHealth systems that monitor vital signs and alert physicians or other caregivers automatically and monitoring and alert systems for multi-tenant facilities such as independent living, assisted living and long-term care.

Both Link to Life's Massachusetts and CST's Michigan facilities will remain in operation, giving CST added redundancy in its monitoring and response capabilities. The combination of the two creates one of the industry's most technologically advanced and scalable monitoring platforms and will provide uninterrupted response center service in the event of a natural disaster or other crisis at either facility. Following the acquisition, the new combined company will employ over 100 people.

"We have a responsibility to the customers who have trusted Link to Life with their health and well-being for 30 years, and that's a commitment we will continue to make as members of the CST team," said Larry Rosenthal, who was president of Link Technologies and now holds an equity stake in CST. "We can now offer the customers who came to CST from Link to Life even more solutions to their health challenges while continuing to provide the personal and caring customer service that they expect and deserve."

The CST product and service portfolio not only increases independence and security for its customers, but also reduces overall health care costs for families and institutions and reduces unnecessary government and insurance health expenditures. For instance, hospital patients can be released more quickly and safely to homes when vital sign monitoring is in place. Missed or incorrect medication doses are a major cause of admittance or readmittance to a hospital. TeleHealth systems in rural environments can save thousands of dollars in emergency medical transport costs. Motion detection and fall monitoring can reduce the need for home health care aide visits. Institutional monitoring and alert systems can make facility staff more efficient and responsive.

"At a time when our national attention is focused on making health care more efficient and effective, our technology-based solutions to many of these fundamental issues make more sense than ever," said Prough. "We already work closely with insurers, government programs and other health care payors to identify ways in which we can maintain or improve quality of life and quality of care while saving money. As America continues to get older and more sensitive to health care costs, we believe that our existing and future solutions will continue to make sense for patients, families and facilities of all kinds."

www.criticalsignaltechnologies.com