TUCSON, Ariz., July 31, 2017 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Accelerate Diagnostics, Inc. announced today the addition of Romney Humphries, PhD, D(ABMM), M(ASCP) to its executive management team as Chief Scientific Officer.

Dr. Romney Humphries comes to Accelerate from UCLA Medical Center where she was the Section Chief for Clinical Microbiology and the Assistant Clinical Professor of the Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine.

Dr. Humphries is highly regarded within the Microbiology and Infectious Diseases communities for her expertise, research, and contributions to the Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute. She is particularly well known for her interest and publications in the area of antimicrobial susceptibility testing, new diagnostic technologies, and her work to address common issues faced by clinical microbiology laboratories.

She is published in more than 100 scientific peer-reviewed papers in journals such as Clinical Infectious Diseases and Journal of Clinical Microbiology. Additionally, she has been invited to speak at over one hundred academic workshops and scientific conferences around the world.

Dr. Humphries also serves on several committees and working groups for organizations including the American Society for Microbiology, the Clinical Laboratory and Standards Institute, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, and the World Health Organization. Her advocacy for improved patient care is evident across numerous radio interviews, magazine commentary, and news media including the Los Angeles Times.

"We're excited to welcome such an accomplished microbiologist, scientist, and researcher to the Accelerate team," said Lawrence Mehren, President and CEO of Accelerate Diagnostics, Inc. "Romney will play a vital role by bringing the voice of the microbiology community to the company."

In addition to providing scientific direction for business and product strategy, Dr. Humphries will lead collaborations with influential academic medical centers and provide evidence based scientific support for clinical adoption of the company's leading-edge diagnostic solutions.

Steve Metzger, Head of Discovery and New Products at Accelerate said, "Right now, clinical micro labs face a number of challenges: a shrinking workforce, legislative changes, and emerging public health threats like antimicrobial resistance. Romney shares our passion for innovation to address these challenges for the lab and the hospital, ultimately improving patient outcomes in a very dramatic way. We are honored to have her join the team."

Dr. Humphries points out that antimicrobial resistance is a tremendous clinical dilemma. "While at UCLA, we encountered patients with highly resistant, at times pan-drug resistant infections, on what seemed like a daily basis. One of the biggest frustrations for us, and other laboratories I've worked with, is the fact that the methods available to hospital laboratories to test for resistance were developed decades ago. It's obviously time for a change," said Dr. Humphries.

Regarding her decision to join the company, Dr. Humphries said, "I've long been a proponent of the value of a phenotypic method, and Accelerate Diagnostics is clearly the leader with this technology. I am excited to join the Accelerate team and bring cutting-edge, rapid and reliable testing to patients suffering from antibiotic-resistant infections."

About Accelerate Diagnostics, Inc.

Accelerate Diagnostics, Inc. ("Accelerate") (Nasdaq:AXDX), is an in vitro diagnostics company dedicated to providing solutions for the global challenge of antibiotic resistance and healthcare-associated infections. The company recently obtained FDA marketing authorization for antimicrobial susceptibility testing direct from positive blood culture samples using its Accelerate Pheno™ system and Accelerate PhenoTest™ BC kit. The system and kit leverage proprietary molecular identification methods and morphokinetic cellular analysis (MCA) to provide minimum inhibitory concentrations for a range of applicable antibiotics.  The fully-automated system is designed to eliminate the lengthy culture and sample preparation steps required prior to antimicrobial susceptibility testing. Recent market studies suggest the solution offers results 1-2 days faster than conventional methods, enabling clinicians to optimize antibiotic selection, dosage, and infusion strategy specific to the individual patient and their infection.

The "ACCELERATE DIAGNOSTICS" and "ACCELERATE PHENO" and "ACCELERATE PHENOTEST" and diamond shaped logos and marks are trademarks or registered trademarks of Accelerate Diagnostics, Inc.

More information about the company, its products or technologies can be found at axdx.com.

Forward-Looking Statements

Certain of the statements made in this press release are forward looking, such as those, among others, about our projections as to when certain key business milestones may be achieved, the potential of our products or technology, the growth of the market, our estimates as to the size of our market opportunity and potential pricing, our competitive position and estimates of time reduction to results, and our future development plans and growth strategy. Actual results or developments may differ materially from those projected or implied in these forward-looking statements. Information about the risks and uncertainties faced by Accelerate Diagnostics is contained in the section captioned "Risk Factors" in the company's most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K, filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on February 28, 2017, and in any other reports that we file with the Securities and Exchange Commission from time to time. The company's forward-looking statements could be affected by general industry and market conditions. Except as required by federal securities laws, the company undertakes no obligation to update or revise these forward-looking statements to reflect new events, uncertainties or other contingencies.

Investors May Contact:

Laura Pierson, Accelerate Diagnostics, +1 520 365-3100, investors@axdx.com



Reporters May Contact:

Andrew Chasteen, Accelerate Diagnostics, +1 520 404-0809, achasteen@axdx.com

Source:  Accelerate Diagnostics, Inc.

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