Tech giant Microsoft announced a long-term partnership with multistate healthcare system Mercy, which will utilize its Azure OpenAI Service to provide generative AI-assisted communication resources to patients and Mercy employees. 

Microsoft's generative AI will be used to help patients understand lab results, schedule appointments and get answers to healthcare-related questions. 

Mercy's workforce will have access to a chatbot that will answer questions about the health systems' policies and procedures and supply information pertaining to HR-related questions, such as ones about benefits. 

"Because of all the investments we have made together with Microsoft in the past few years, including the use of Microsoft’s secure cloud, we are better positioned to perform real-time clinical decision-making that ultimately improves patient care," Joe Kelly, Mercy’s executive vice president of transformation and business development officer, said in a statement. "With Microsoft, we are exploring more than four dozen uses of AI and will launch multiple new AI use cases by the middle of next year to transform care and experiences for patients and co-workers. This is predictive, proactive and personalized care at its best."

THE LARGER TREND

Last week Microsoft announced that Minnesota-based Mayo Clinic would participate in Microsoft's 365 Copilot Early Access Program in order to provide the health system's clinicians and staff with the ability to test AI technology. The project is meant to combine large language models with Microsoft 365 apps to improve productivity and reduce administrative work. 

In August, Microsoft announced it entered into a five-year partnership with Duke Health to examine the potential of generative AI and cloud technology to improve healthcare. The pair also announced plans to create the Duke Health AI Innovation Lab and Center of Excellence.

Duke would also use Microsoft's Azure cloud for clinical care to further advancements in research and education and promote health equity. 

Microsoft has established numerous other alliances this year, including:

• a multiyear cloud development plan with health insurer Blue Shield of California.
• a plan to integrate its AI solutions into telehealth platform Teladoc Health.
• applying its machine learning speech models into speech analysis software company Canary Speech.