Big Tech has put in its best efforts to be involved in the vaccine rollout, with Google, Facebook and Apple creating tools to help get people vaccines.

Google later this month will launch a new version of its smart speaker Nest Hub that can track users' sleep via a built-in radar sensor, according to a March 16 company blog post.

Google Health has hired Charles DeShazer, MD, to be its director of clinical products, according to his LinkedIn profile.

Providence's health tech investment portfolio Tegria has acquired Cumberland, a health IT consulting firm for payers and providers, according to a March 16 news release. 

Strive Health, a health tech company providing kidney care, on March 16 closed a $140 million series B financing round.

Philadelphia-based Jefferson Health and General Catalyst teamed up with healthcare software company Tendo to launch a new digital engagement platform that connects patients, clinicians and caregivers, according to a March 16 news release.

Here are eight recent health IT vendor contracts and go-lives accelerating digital transformation efforts at healthcare organizations.

Abbott launched a pandemic defense coalition dedicated to studying coronavirus variants and developing rapid response plans for future viral outbreaks, the medical devicemaker announced March 11.

Walgreens tapped Nuance's artificial intelligence-powered digital assistant to expand scheduling COVID-19 vaccine appointments for consumers beyond the retail giant's web-based portal.

Cincinnati Children's Hospital received $5 million to invest in early-stage life science research and development, Cincy Inno reported March 11.

With digital health adoption rates skyrocketing from the COVID-19 pandemic, healthcare 'unicorn' activity hit record levels in 2020, according to a recent CB Insights report.

Miami-based Baptist Health South Florida is starting a new healthcare technology innovation fellowship to foster development of new products and interventions in healthcare, according to a March 10 news release.

Online symptom checkers in the U.S. and U.K. sometimes stop patients from seeking prompt treatment for serious illnesses, according to a study published March 9 in BMJ Health & Care Informatics.

Apple and Harvard University teamed up to conduct a large-scale study on menstruation symptoms with the goal of advancing science around and destigmatizing menstruation.

Fast Company released its 2021 list of "The Most Innovative Health Companies," with 10 healthcare tech companies featured in the ranking. 

Zocdoc founder and former CEO Cyrus Massoumi recently launched Dr. B, a platform that matches Americans seeking COVID-19 vaccines with leftover doses so they don't go to waste, The New York Times reported March 9.

Ascension Ventures, the healthcare venture arm of St. Louis-based Ascension, closed a $285 million strategic venture capital fund, bringing the firm's total assets to more than $1 billion, according to a March 5 news release. 

Walgreens grew its digital health platform March 4 by expanding four existing collaborations with healthcare providers and adding 11 new ones.

DispatchHealth, a provider of in-home medical care, on March 3 closed a $200 million series D financing round. 

Washington, D.C.-based Children's National Hospital, Virginia Tech and Johnson & Johnson Innovation have partnered to launch a new healthcare technology and research innovation campus, according to a March 1 news release.