- WELL Health Technologies (TSX:WELL) and Microsoft (NDAQ:MSFT) have signed a five-year agreement to streamline provider care, control costs, and improve health outcomes by expediting healthcare’s transition into the digital age
- The agreement will focus on scalability, operational efficiency, data protection and innovation through the integration of Microsoft’s cloud and artificial intelligence technology
- WELL Health offers technology, services and support to more than 34,000 healthcare providers across Canada and the United States
- WELL Health stock has given back about 39 per cent year-over-year but has gained more than 440 per cent since 2019
WELL Health Technologies (TSX:WELL) and Microsoft (NDAQ:MSFT) have signed a five-year agreement to streamline provider care, control costs, and improve health outcomes by expediting healthcare’s transition into the digital age.
The partners will integrate Microsoft’s cloud and artificial intelligence (AI) capabilities with WELL’s digital health platform focusing on four core areas:
- Modernizing and enhancing scalability of WELL’s cloud infrastructure by integrating Azure Database for MySQL, Azure SQL Managed Instances and Azure Databricks, allowing the company to fully capitalize on accelerating organic growth and large enterprise opportunities including in the public sector.
- Healthcare cost optimization with a focus on operational efficiencies while increasing the quality and accessibility of care.
- Optimizing WELL’s data protection measures with the most advanced security protocols.
- Leading innovative healthcare solutions backed by Microsoft’s generative AI technologies, such as Azure OpenAI Service, to drive process improvements and better patient experiences.
With an initial focus on North America, Microsoft and WELL Health intend to expand their offering to patients and practitioners around the world, ushering in “a new era of healthcare solutions that are proactive, personalized and secure,” according to Tuesday’s news release.
WELL Health is well-positioned to pursue further growth, having grown revenue by 23.6 times from C$32.81 million in 2019 to C$776.05 million in 2023, 98 per cent of which is recurring or highly re-occurring, while achieving profitability over the past two years.
Management insights
“Our collaboration with Microsoft will enable us to accelerate our growth and innovation, vastly improve our scalability, reduce complexity and improve our cost profile for our cloud offerings over the long term,” Amir Javidan, Well Health’s chief operating officer and head of platform solutions, said in a statement. “Microsoft will provide specialized support and services that will allow us to unify our infrastructure environments to a more homogeneous and advanced posture, bringing our digital health platform to new heights. We are honored to partner with Microsoft, and eagerly anticipate the transformative impact our collaboration will have on healthcare delivery.”
“WELL’s integration with Microsoft Azure will streamline operational efficiency and also bring advancements in patient care through our Azure AI platform,” said Allison West Hughes, Microsoft’s corporate vice president of digital acquisition. “WELL shares our commitment to empowering healthcare practitioners with innovative solutions that redefine cost management, enhance data security and catalyze service innovation.”
“By taking advantage of the robust foundation of Microsoft Azure and Azure OpenAI Service, WELL is not only optimizing cloud hosting but also fortifying business continuity, empowering the integration of AI-driven healthcare technologies, and capitalizing on economies of scale,” added Stu Coombes, WELL Health’s vice president of technology services. “The technology teams who are working behind the scenes to drive this transformation are highly motivated by the collaboration with Microsoft and the associated support this collaboration brings. This signifies WELL’s unwavering commitment to advancing patient care, driving operational excellence and shaping the future of healthcare delivery.”
About WELL Health Technologies
WELL Health offers technology, services and support to more than 34,000 healthcare providers across Canada and the United States. Its solutions power the largest owned and operated healthcare ecosystem in Canada with more than 165 clinics supporting primary care, specialized care and diagnostic services.
WELL Health Technologies Corp. stock (TSX:WELL) is down by 0.55 per cent, trading at C$3.58 per share as of 9:34 am ET. The stock has given back about 39 per cent year-over-year, but has gained more than 440 per cent since 2019.
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