Berkery, Noyes & Co. advises Reed Elseiver on its sale of nursing publisher Springhouse Corporation to Wolters Kluwer

New York, June 14, 2000 — Wolters Kluwer said today that it has finalized the purchase of Springhouse Corporation, Springhouse, Penn., (USA), from Reed Elsevier, London.

Springhouse, a nursing publishing company with 250 employees and 1999 revenues of $59 million, will be merged into Lippincott Williams & Wilkins (LWW), one of the operating companies of the Wolters Kluwer International Health & Science division, Philadelphia, Penn. (USA).

“The addition of Springhouse’s impressive array of nursing publications and products to our current nursing program solidifies our position as the leading publisher for nursing professionals and students,” said Herman Pabbruwe, CEO of Wolters Kluwer International Health & Science.

Springhouse publications include the journals Nursing 2000 and The Nurse Practitioner, and annual industry directories such as CareerDirectory, Health-Care Recruitment Guide and APN SourceBook. In addition, the company produces reference books, textbooks, licensing exam reviews, software and anatomical charts. Springhouse also organizes a number of noted national conferences including the Nursing Management Congress and the Clinical Symposium on Wound Management. Springhouse operates www.springnet.com, an online community for nurse practitioners and students.

Lippincott Williams & Wilkins nursing publications include more than 250 textbooks, reference books and review products, over 25 nursing journals, including the American Journal of Nursing, and more than 195 multi-media products including CD ROMs, video and audio tapes. LWW also operates www.NursingCenter.com, an award-winning internet portal for nurses and nursing students that offers online journals, news, education, communities, webcasts, and an online bachelor of nursing program with the University of Wisconsin.

“Nursing professionals are an important and respected audience for Wolters Kluwer International Health & Science,” said Pabbruwe. “This acquisition will expand our access to this audience that is crucial to the delivery of quality patient care.”

LWW has nursing offices in New York, Philadelphia and Baltimore. Springhouse’s current offices in Springhouse, PA, will be retained.

Wolters Kluwer is a multi-national information services company with annual sales of more than EUR 3 billion, employing 18,000 people in 26 countries worldwide. Core activities are Legal, Tax & Business, International Health & Science, and Educational Publishing.

Wolters Kluwer International Health & Science companies offer publications and software in medicine, nursing, pharmacy, science and related areas. In addition to Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, WKIHS includes Ovid Technologies, New York; Facts and Comparisons, St. Louis, MO; Kluwer Academic Publishers, The Netherlands; and Adis International, Chester, UK.