AccentHealth is acquiring Havas Impact, the holding company’s waiting room “WallBoards” arm, in a move that will double the New York firm’s footprint. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

The Havas unit boasts a network of 20,000 physician offices that host its WallBoards (Accent­Health uses the term “Health Panels”), displays that are stocked with brochures offering condition-specific health information. Accent­Health’s pre-acquisition network spanned 12,300 offices. Some of those offices hosted the shop’s Health Panels, while others offered its waiting room TV network featuring CNN-branded content hosted by Dr. Sanjay Gupta. There was “minimal crossover” between the AccentHealth and Havas Networks, said VP marketing and communications Andrew Schulman.

“We’ve been working to double our national footprint, and with this acquisition, we’re going to answer that call on reach and scale,” said Schulman.

After the acquisition, the  company’s network will now extend to 26,000 offices, with around 12,500 hosting Accent­Health TV screens, and 63,000 physicians—up from 44,000.

It’s not yet clear how many of the existing staff will be making the jump from Havas over to AccentHealth, but there will be “some collateral transition,” according to Schulman. Where Havas Impact was headquartered in Chicago, with operations handled out of Atlanta, staffs will be consolidated into AccentHealth’s offices, with sales in New York and operations in Tampa.

Going forward, the company is looking to add to its 17 condition-specific waiting room TV networks, launched last year, and to expand out of waiting rooms into other environments, including hospitals and fitness centers.

“It’s a growth opportunity for our waiting room TV network,” said Schulman. “Our goal is to expand the waiting-room experience and be able to fully brand all of our waiting rooms.”

From the January 01, 2013 Issue of MM+M - Medical Marketing and Media