American Data Network

American Data Network of Little Rock, as its name plainly states, deals with data. But its core business is not in some intangible or obscure technological pursuit. The information ADN traffics in has measurable, real-world results for what really matters: health and safety.
The company was started in 1994 as a collaborative effort between Arkansas Blue Cross & Blue Shield and several hospitals, including Baptist Health System of Little Rock, Conway Regional Medical Center and others. It now has 13 full-time employees and three independent contractors.
ADN offers Web-based products for tracking clinical, quality and financial data for health care providers. The company primarily pursues regional, acute care hospitals with 100 to 350 patient beds, but ongoing health care reforms are opening up other markets, such as nursing homes, physician clinics and outpatient surgery centers.
Each month, ADN processes more than 35 million patient records. The company’s products aid health care providers in tracking their own services and results, as well as benchmarking themselves against other providers.
“Our primary focus is to not only recognize but actually respond to the demand of those who work in health care quality and patient safety,” said Cole Williamson, president and CEO. “By doing that, we’ve continued to design applications and services that meet those clinical decision support needs.”
Williamson predicts significant opportunities for ADN to grow because of the Patient Safety & Quality Improvement Act of 2005, which authorized the creation of Patient Safety Organizations to help health care providers report and share quality and patient safety data without fear of litigation. In 2009, ADN became a Patient Safety Organization and is now helping providers track such information.
“We’re a small company, but that really plays to our strengths and has facilitated our staying power over time,” he said.

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