Microsoft rolled out its cloud for healthcare offering this week and said it would be the first of many at an RBC Capital Markets event May 20, according to financial news website The Street.
Greg Moore, Microsoft's vice president of health, spoke at the event, outlining how the new cloud aimed to improve efficiency and outcomes in healthcare.
Five takeaways:
1. During the pandemic, Microsoft reported 34 million healthcare interactions on Microsoft Teams. As a result, Mr. Moore said the company decided it was the right time to bring together packages that included Azure, Microsoft 365, Dynamics and other offerings for healthcare providers.
2. The Cloud for Healthcare is HIPAA-compliant, meaning that healthcare providers can share and analyze medical information while also meeting regulatory standards.
3. Microsoft co-developed healthcare-specific solutions with partners in healthcare, including Allscripts, Adaptive Biotechnologies, Nuance, KPMG, Humana, Providence, Novartis and Walgreens Boots Alliance.
4. The company also is tackling operational efficiency and provider burnout by offering a chatbot for diagnostic purposes and artificial intelligence that can generate documentation and paperwork. It also supports virtual appointments, which Mr. Moore predicts will become a permanent part of the healthcare landscape.
5. Microsoft's new cloud for healthcare and efficiency tools also aim to reduce costs to the healthcare system.
"Healthcare is 18 percent of GDP, roughly. This industry is already infused with technology, and like other industries, is making a significant move to the cloud," he said. "That's not a part of the economy, a business you ignore."