(Fort Worth, TX) --- Joe Santoro, Senior Director of Healthcare Systems at HEALTHPOINT^®, Ltd., a DFB Pharmaceuticals affiliate, has announced that John M. Burks has joined the company as Director of Healthcare Systems.

        Texas-based HEALTHPOINT is a market leader in pharmaceuticals and biologics for wound care, dermatology, and surgical products worldwide. Mr. Burks will oversee HEALTHPOINT business relationships with major group purchasing organizations (GPOs), closed-door pharmacies, and national medical/surgical distributors.

        Mr. Burks is well versed in healthcare supply chain management and healthcare business partnerships. Most recently president of his own healthcare consulting firm, Burks Healthcare Concepts, Inc., Mr. Burks was formerly senior vice president of e-commerce and information technology at Novation, Inc., the U.S. healthcare industry’s largest group purchasing organization, and vice president of contract services at VHA, Inc. a national network of community-owned hospitals, just two of the numerous leadership positions he held during his 15 years at VHA/Novation.

        “John Burks has unique breadth of experience and healthcare acumen,” said Mr. Santoro. “His first-hand knowledge of the nuances of business partnerships and healthcare purchasing agreements will greatly benefit our tissue management and surgical divisions. His understanding of integrated delivery networks (IDNs), GPO contract strategy, contract compliance issues, and distribution processes will be a great asset to HEALTHPOINT.”

        “I look forward to helping HEALTHPOINT drive further growth and greater penetration through our important national agreements,” said Mr. Burks. “We will make HEALTHPOINT’s exemplary products even more accessible by strengthening these vital relationships with the organizations who serve our customers and providers.”

        Mr. Burks began his career at VHA marketing products for the operating room in the late 1980s. By 1996, he was named vice president of contract services for the supply chain management division. The success of such programs as VHA PLUS^®, the first GPO private-label program; OPPORTUNITY^®, a committed purchasing program; and Marketplace@Novation, Novation’s e-commerce platform, led to the senior vice presidency for e-commerce and information technology for Novation in 1998.

        Novation is the supply chain management company for VHA and the University Health Consortium (UHC), an alliance of academic medical centers. Novation represents the purchasing interests of more than 2,400 healthcare organizations and nearly 90,000 of the nation’s staffed beds.

        Prior to VHA, Mr. Burks worked for American Hospital Supply, Enterprise Systems, and Medline. A graduate of the University of Illinois, Mr. Burks earned an MBA at Lake Forest College in Lake Forest, IL. Mr. Burks and his family live in Colleyville, Texas.

        Since its inception in 1992, HEALTHPOINT has established a U.S. presence in the research, development, and marketing of branded pharmaceuticals, over the counter drugs, and medical devices for tissue management, dermatology, and surgical markets. An aggressive research and development effort has brought HEALTHPOINT’s unique technologies to the market, setting the pace for its highly trained field sales organization of direct sales representatives. HEALTHPOINT, with over 290 employees, is a DFB Pharmaceuticals, Inc. affiliate company. HEALTHPOINT is based in Fort Worth, Texas. Visit HEALTHPOINT’s web site at www.healthpoint.com.

        Also headquartered in Fort Worth, DFB provides technology-driven products, outsourcing services, and licensing opportunities to the healthcare industry worldwide through its affiliate companies, contract partners, and branded marketing organizations. They are on the web at www.dfb.com.

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