Microsoft is bringing its cloud and AI tech to clinicians

Microsoft and Providence St. Joseph Health announced a multiyear strategic partnership that will lean on the tech company's cloud expertise and collaborative workplace productivity tools to enable new developments in data-driven care at the health system's more than 850 clinics and hospitals, which employ nearly 119,000 caregivers.

The announcement is further evidence that Microsoft is realigning its healthcare strategy: The tech giant is pivoting away from consumer-facing products and focusing on enterprise solutions — a move we identified after the company shut down its personal health record system, HealthVault, in April.

Here's what it means: Microsoft sees healthcare as a growth opportunity for Azure Cloud services, whose overall market share is being outshined by Amazon Web Services (AWS).

The bigger picture: We expect health systems to continue leaning on tech companies' experience moving and analyzing huge amounts of data — which they need to break through the interoperability barrier in healthcare.

Big tech can help clear the path for transformative tech in healthcare by streamlining health data sharing — a win for hospitals and data-hungry developers. Six major tech companies — including Amazon, Google, and Microsoft — announced their intentions last year to work toward improving interoperability of healthcare.

The Fast Healthcare Interoperability Resources (FHIR) data standard — a more agile, developer-friendly method of sharing health data within and across health organizations — achieved 82% adoption in the United States last year, which should help providers unlock insights buried in their huge troves of patient data.

However, utilizing those insights to support innovative tech like AI diagnostics and precision medicine will requireexpertise moving data across many different platforms, often through robust cloud-based networks — something that most healthcare-specific companies aren't experienced with. That means the sky's the limit for whichever big tech company can establish themselves as the leader for cloud tech in healthcare.

Interested in getting the full story? Here are two ways to get access:

1. Sign up for Digital Health Pro, Business Insider Intelligence's expert product suite keeping you up-to-date on the people, technologies, trends, and companies shaping the future of healthcare, delivered to your inbox 6x a week. >>Get Started

2. Subscribe to a Premium pass to Business Insider Intelligence and gain immediate access to Digital Health Pro, plus more than 250 other expertly researched reports. As an added bonus, you'll also gain access to all future reports and daily newsletters to ensure you stay ahead of the curve and benefit personally and professionally. >>Learn More Now

Source: Business Insider

Powered by NewsAPI.org

Keywords:

Microsoft • Artificial intelligence • Technology • Microsoft • Health • Technology • Company • Expert • Collaboration • Employment • Productivity • Tool • Health care • Health system • Clinic • Hospital • Microsoft • Health care • Technology • Consumer • Product (business) • Corporation • Personal health record • Electronic health record • Microsoft HealthVault • Microsoft • Health care • Microsoft Azure • Cloud computing • Market share • Amazon Web Services • Amazon Web Services • Interoperability • Health care • Health care • Health care • Amazon.com • Google • Microsoft • Fast Healthcare Interoperability Resources • Agile software development • Data • Adoption in the United States • Health professional • Technology • Artificial intelligence • Precision medicine • Data • Cloud computing • Health care • Company • The Sky's the Limit (1943 film) • Technology • Health care • Digital health • Business Insider • Intelligence • Product (business) • Technology • Company • Email • Subscription business model • Business Insider • Pro Plus (company) •