Microsoft, Health Catalyst to collaborate on health analytics solutions

Health Catalyst, a Utah-based data warehousing and analytics company, is partnering with Microsoft to deploy data warehouse and analytics solutions for the healthcare sector.

The collaborators will develop Microsoft’s Analytics Platform System (APS), which brings together SQL Server and Hadoop data into a pre-built appliance, integrated with Health Catalyst's Late-Binding Data Warehouse and Analytics Platform. The collaboration includes the following solutions over the short-term, mid-range and long-term:

• Deploying and optimizing Microsoft's parallel data warehouse architecture (APS) at one of Health Catalyst's largest client organizations
• Collaborating on the implementation of Health Catalyst's predictive models, geospatial analytics and natural language processing to assist with population health management
• Extending the Health Catalyst Late-Binding architecture and using PolyBase to combine SQL Server and Microsoft's Hadoop-based platform
• Deploying Health Catalyst's de-identified comparative analytics platform, CAFE, to Microsoft Azure
• Working together to enhance Atlas, Health Catalyst's proprietary metadata repository, its white space data entry tool IDEA and its Source Mart Designer, all of which are integrated with the SQL Server product line

"With initiatives such as population health management and accountable care continuing to grow in importance, the timing is right. Health Catalyst offers the type of disruptive thinking and deep industry knowledge that fits Microsoft's vision for the healthcare industry,” said Bill Hawkins, director of Health and Life Sciences Partners, Microsoft, in a statement.