LAKE FOREST, Ill., Aug. 27, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Hospira, Inc. (NYSE: HSP), the world's leading provider of injectable drugs and infusion technologies, today announced the first installation of the Plum 360(TM) infusion system with Hospira MedNet(TM), at Shannon Medical Center in San Angelo, Texas. The Plum 360 infusion system, supported by the new Hospira MedNet version 6.1 safety software, is the latest addition to Hospira's innovative portfolio of next-generation smart pumps.

"Hospira is excited to partner with Shannon Medical Center on the launch of the new Plum general infusion device," said Cynthia Ansari, vice president, U.S. Marketing and Software, Medical Devices, Hospira. "This marks another important step on Hospira's journey towards offering the newest, most advanced line of infusion devices available. Designed with close attention to the clinical needs of our customers, the Plum 360 infusion system delivers advanced capabilities to enable clinical excellence, including automatic default into an enhanced Hospira MedNet drug library."

Hospira is a leading provider of safety-focused medication management systems. The Plum 360 infusion system includes unique features designed to address challenges that hospitals face daily as they work to improve the safety of intravenous (I.V.) medication administration. These include a secondary line that connects directly to the PlumSet(TM) cassette, enabling the pump to be programmed with two compatible medications in either concurrent or piggyback delivery. The secondary line, delivered through channel B of the pump, also integrates with the electronic medical record (EMR) systems through Hospira's I.V.-EMR interoperability solution. The secondary line enables air management that does not require disconnecting the line from the patient, which helps reduce the potential for contamination.

Video - Learn more about the unique design and features of the Plum 360 infusion system here: http://bit.ly/Plum360

Hospira MedNet further enhances the safety features of the Plum 360 infusion system with an expanded drug library to support safety limits for more medications, across more clinical care areas of use, helping to enhance clinical best practices for I.V. medication administration. The Plum 360 infusion system also provides several security enhancements, including improved protection of critical communication ports, no remote command execution, and support for 128-bit SSL encryption of all data transmitted to and from Hospira MedNet version 6.1.

"Shannon Medical Center is proud to be the first hospital in the United States to implement Plum 360 smart infusion pumps," said Becky Fuentes, R.N., associate chief nursing officer, Shannon Medical Center. "The adoption of this advanced technology for intravenous medication administration is another example of Shannon's commitment to providing the highest possible quality of care for our patients. The use of these advanced devices and software will strengthen our efforts to improve patient safety and support our dedicated caregivers in their mission to change lives for the better."

Hospira MedNet version 6.1 advances smart pump interoperability with a new, configurable capability, Alarm Forwarding, that forwards I.V. device alarm data to EMR and Alarm Management Systems.* In addition to existing integrated features, including automated programming of an infusion pump and auto-documentation of I.V. data to the electronic medical record, Alarm Forwarding can help to augment a hospital's alarm management policies by automating the notification of pump alarms to clinicians. Hospira has implemented I.V.-EMR interoperability at more hospitals than all other pump vendors combined, and with more major EMR platforms than any other company.(1)

The Plum 360 infusion system with Hospira MedNet is a complementary addition to Hospira's medication management portfolio, which also includes the new Sapphire(TM) ambulatory infusion system and the market-leading LifeCare PCA(TM) pain management pump with Hospira MedNet.

About Hospira

Hospira, Inc. is the world's leading provider of injectable drugs and infusion technologies, and a global leader in biosimilars. Through its broad, integrated portfolio, Hospira is uniquely positioned to Advance Wellness(TM) by improving patient and caregiver safety while reducing healthcare costs. The company is headquartered in Lake Forest, Ill. Learn more at www.hospira.com.

About Shannon Medical Center

Licensed for 400 beds, Shannon Medical Center has served West Texas for more than 80 years. The designated lead level 3 trauma center for the region, Shannon has a nationally recognized intensive care unit, provides critical care to newborns as young as 28 weeks gestation, and offers a state-of-the-art radiology department among many more services. Learn more at www.shannonhealth.com.

-- Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 --
A Caution Concerning Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Forward-looking statements generally relate to future events or Hospira's future financial or operating performance. In some cases, you can identify forward-looking statements because they contain words such as "may," "will," "should," "expects," "plans," "anticipates," "could," "intends," "target," "projects," "contemplates," "believes," "estimates," "predicts," "potential" or "continue" or the negative of these words or other similar terms or expressions that concern Hospira's expectations, strategy, plans or intentions. Forward-looking statements in this press release include Hospira's expectations regarding regulatory approvals, clinical trials and the actions of competitors. Hospira's expectations and beliefs regarding these matters may not materialize, and actual results in future periods are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those projected. Actual results may differ materially from those indicated by these forward-looking statements as a result of various important factors, including, without limitation, challenges inherent in creating and developing compounds and product candidates and economic, competitive, governmental, regulatory, legal, supply and other factors. Information on these and additional risks affecting Hospira's business and operating results are more fully discussed in the section entitled "Risk Factors" in Hospira's most recently filed annual report on Form 10-K and any subsequently filed quarterly report on Form 10-Q. The forward-looking statements in this press release are based on information available as of the date hereof, and Hospira disclaims any obligation to update any forward-looking statements, except as required by law.

*Requires I.V./EMR interoperability

(1. )Hess P. Smart pump/EMR integration: What are my best options? May 2015 Performance Report. ©2015. KLAS Enterprises, LLC. All rights reserved. www.KLASresearch.com.

Video - http://youtu.be/0wQrvx-kvro

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SOURCE Hospira, Inc.