Tableau Software and AHIMA to Offer Visual Analytics Software to Healthcare Information Management Students in e-HIM(r) Virtual Lab

Tableau’s multi-year platinum sponsorship will provide educational opportunities for HIM students about rapid analytics and data visualization.

SEATTLE, Wash. – October 6, 2008 -- Tableau Software (http://www.tableausoftware.com), the global leader in fast analytics and visualization software, and the American Health Information Management Association (AHIMA) (http://www.ahima.org), the premier association of health information management (HIM) professionals with more than 52,000 members, today announced that Tableau Software will provide its visual data analysis solution for AHIMA’s e-HIM® Virtual Lab program. As part of an agreement recognizing Tableau Software as a multi-year AHIMA “platinum partner”, the award-winning Tableau Desktop will be available in the Virtual Lab to help HIM students gain hands-on experience with data visualization, analytics and business intelligence software. The e-HIM® Virtual Lab program provides educators and students in campus-based and distance learning colleges and universities with single site, virtual access to health information management technologies, through an Internet-based software laboratory.

As part of the partnership, Tableau will also sponsor live and on-demand training courses customized for HIM faculty and students. The HIM on-demand training courses are available at http://www.tableausoftware.com/ondemandws/ahima. In addition, Tableau will be exhibiting and participating in the 80th AHIMA Annual Convention and Exhibit October 13 to 15 in Seattle, WA.

"With the amount of healthcare data used in day to day operations today, HIM students need more preparation than ever to analyze and understand this data. They need the skills and tools that will enable them to not only manage that data but to also learn from it,” said Kevin Brown, vice president of alliances and partnerships at Tableau Software. “Tableau is delighted to be providing software to the e-HIM Virtual Lab and customized training options that will help HIM students easily learn how to use visual analytics software to help solve those challenges."

Tableau Desktop (http://www.tableausoftware.com/products/desktop) connects directly to a wide assortment of databases, integrating data exploration and visualization to make analytics fast and easy for nearly anyone of any experience level. Also available are Tableau Server ( http://www.tableausoftware.com/products/server), which provides Web-based sharing and collaboration capabilities, and the company’s free Tableau Reader (http://www.tableausoftware.com/products/reader), which enables anyone to use and benefit from visual analysis. Tableau’s products have already attracted more than 10,000 licensed users ranging from one-person businesses to the world’s largest organizations.

"Tableau will help us expose Virtual Lab students to best practices in real-world data analytics, using their unique software tool,” said Sandra Kersten, Virtual Lab Director, AHIMA. “HIM students need to be at the forefront of knowing how to rapidly analyze and understand rich data sources in order to gain deeper insight on the business conditions facing their organizations. With tools and training from Tableau, they can become proficient and capable in visual analytics quickly and easily."

About Tableau Software

Tableau Software, a privately held company based in Seattle, is the leading provider of software applications for fast analytics and visualization. Its award-winning products can be downloaded at http://www.tableausoftware.com/trial and used by anyone, including executives, managers, business analysts, strategic consultants, financial professionals, market researchers, scientists and engineers in nearly every industry. For more information, visit http://www.tableausoftware.com.

About American Health Information Management Association

The American Health Information Management Association is America’s leading professional society whose mission is to “improve healthcare by advancing best practices and standards for health information management and [serve as] the trusted source for education, research and professional credentialing.” AHIMA represents more than 52,000 specially educated HIM professionals who serve healthcare and the public by managing, analyzing and utilizing data vital for health system management.

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Media Contacts:

Chris Warfield, Sterling Communications for Tableau Software
206-388-5758
cwarfield@sterlingpr.com

Theresa Grant, AHIMA
312-233-1159
theresa.grant@ahima.org