Welcome from David

Few issues are as important to Canadians as healthcare. We consider affordable, accessible and quality health delivery to be a top priority, and something we expect governments at all levels to cultivate and continuously improve upon.

Like many countries, the Canadian healthcare sector faces a range of complex and unprecedented challenges. A rapidly aging population is putting greater resource demands on service providers at a time when workers are in short supply. New technologies and drugs are providing major innovation, but also increasing healthcare costs progressively higher. In fact, healthcare spending in Canada now exceeds $100 billion annually, and accounts for 10 per cent of Canada’s gross domestic product. This leaves Governments facing the dual challenge of controlling costs while ensuring that wait times and access to services meet the needs and expectations of citizens.

At Microsoft, we’re deeply committed to helping healthcare organizations provide Canadians with timely and cost-effective access to quality services. We believe that technology adoption by clinicians, administrators and consumers of health services is critical to helping achieve improved services while managing costs. We also recognize that at the heart of every healthcare and life sciences organization are people. Providing these workers with the right technology can help them work more quickly and efficiently, and help increase the rate of innovation and positive change. Simply put, technology can empower people to transform healthcare.

Microsoft’s focus in healthcare consists of an overall architecture and platform called the Connected Health Framework, which maps directly to provincial and national Canadian standards. Working within this framework, Microsoft and technology partners have developed a range of innovative software solutions to help meet constantly evolving industry needs. Microsoft-based technologies can also help organizations better plan, evaluate, predict and model service delivery, and empower patients to become more involved in their own care. From community care to large hospital environments; from physician clinics to regional health authorities; from home care to government enterprises; Microsoft can help people in organizations connect, collaborate and make informed decisions.

I passionately believe that technology can help drive innovation and improvement in this sector. I invite you to explore and learn how Microsoft-based technology can play a role in building a strong and sustainable healthcare future for Canadians.

Sincerely,
Dave Pattenden