Irish health software company CareWorks has been acquired by UK-based Advanced for an undisclosed sum.
The company, which is based in Dublin, provides cloud-based case management software for health and social care organisations, including Tusla. It offers a single shared information system for community nurses, mental health workers, social workers and therapists to record care, providing necessary access to essential electronic care records.
The acquisition will see CareWorks integrated into Advanced, providing the larger company with further opportunity to expand its operations in Ireland. The UK company already has operations in Ireland which include its GP out-of-hours services, private organisations such as Caredoc and NorthDoc, and customers within the legal and education sectors.
"This is good news for both our customers and our teams, adding capacity and market presence to our expertise and solutions," said Michael Dolan, chief executive of CareWorks.
“Being part of the Advanced family will help to spearhead the delivery of a fully integrated end-to-end health and care platform, with CareWorks an integral component. We jointly recognise the transformative benefits that bringing together health and social care will deliver.”
The acquisition is the first since Advanced was acquired by funds advised by BC Partners, with former owner Vista Equity Partners continuing as an investor. It also provides the company with a foothold in the social care market.
"In the UK and Ireland care is becoming ever more important," said Advanced chief executive Gordon Wilson. "We wanted to round out our total solutions for the UK and Ireland."
Investment
Advanced's chief marketing officer Sally Scott said the acquisition was a "sound prospect" for the company, and the next step was integrating the business "at pace" into the existing structure, deciding where to provide investment.
Employing 60 people, CareWorks also has an office in the UK and another in the US. Advanced said it did not plan any rationalisation of the company in the near or medium term.
“We are growing as a business and we need good talent,” said Mr Wilson. “In Ireland and the UK if you’re in IT you’re in relatively high demand.”
Advanced currently employs 2,400 people. Among the organisations it works with are Aer Lingus, University College Dublin, Trinity College Dublin, the National University of Ireland – Maynooth, the Agriculture and Food Development Authority, the University of Ulster and Queen's University, Belfast.
