Be well. Protected

Oct 4, 2007 13:12 GMT  ·  By

Microsoft has set up a health vault designed to ensure that users will benefit from streamlined access to health-related information. The Microsoft HealthVault is a new initiative debuted with a focus on delivering an increased focus on healthcare, but at the same time only a piece of the puzzle. This because the Redmond company has also integrated healthcare initiatives into the MSN portal and in Live Search. Microsoft considers the health vertical area of its search engine under Windows Live, as one of the pillars set up to point Live Search 2.0 on its way to become an equivalent of Google and Yahoo.

"When it's your job to protect your family's health, you need every advantage. Imagine if you had a way to collect, store, and share the health information critical to your family's well-being. HealthVault is the new and FREE way to do just that. Imagine controlling the flow of your health information. Whether you need to search the Web for the most up-to-date treatments, catalog existing health records, receive test results, or monitor current physical readings - HealthVault gives you the control you need," reads a message posted on HealthVault.

Microsoft promises that HealthVault is nothing short of a revolutionary way to perform searches for healthcare information and articles on the web. While focused exclusively on health issues, users will be pointed to articles, websites and sponsored links with each query, while at the same time having the option to refine the results via the topic dashboard. In addition, HealthVault permits users to store, collect, and share their healthcare information via an online account hosted by Microsoft in the cloud. And on top of these two features, Microsoft also allows users to connect medical devices to HealthVault and upload the data to their account.

"Connect your HealthVault-compatible home health monitoring devices from partners, such as sport watches, blood glucose monitors, peak flow meters and blood pressure monitors to HealthVault Connection Center, and let our software copy your device data to your HealthVault record. Connection Center is a utility you can use to add data to health records in your HealthVault account from health and fitness devices such as heart rate monitors, blood pressure monitors, peak flow meters, and glucometers. When you use HealthVault Connection Center, data from your device is imported into your computer and then uploaded to HealthVault", is the description of the HealthVault Connection Center.