What is Helm, and what is a Helm Chart? Helm is the package manager for Kubernetes — in other words, it is used to help you manage Kubernetes applications. Helm Charts allow you to define, install and configure your Kubernetes application. Kubernetes is an open source system, which allows you to automate, deploy, scale and otherwise manage applications. The charts are easy to create, share and publish, which makes them so popular. A chart is a collection of files that describe a set of Kubernetes resources. One chart can be used to deploy something very simple or a full web application stack with HTTP servers and databases.

Have I confused you yet? Have you used Yellowdog Updater, Modified (YUM) before? Helm is analogous to YUM. Have you used Red Hat Package Manager (RPM) files before? Helm Charts are packages, which are analogous to RPMs. The home for the Helm Charts are the Kubernetes manifests, which provide the configuration parameters allowing users to customize their deployment. The latest version of Helm is actually maintained by the Cloud Native Computing Foundation, in collaboration with Microsoft, Google, Bitnami and the greater community.

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Big data has a lot of potential to improve healthcare and a number of companies are developing applications to help make that happen, according to a new report.

Healthcare market research firm Kalorama Information dove into government and trade source databases to outline some of the uses of big data and the groups that are driving the push for those programs. Established healthcare technology projects like IBM Watson, for example, created a new era of computing, while more recent ventures from Google and Apple could bring even more patient and genomic data into the fold.

“Big data companies are looking to connect tens of millions of data sets from almost every facet of the health system—office visits, surgeries, lab tests, images, medical devices, prescriptions and more,” Bruce Carlson, Kalorama Information’s publisher, said in an announcement.

“The derived data can be used to create patient care guidelines.”

Working alongside these IT companies makes sense right now, according to Kalorama. New software allows for faster, more far-reaching data collection and it can analyze complex information from sources like spectroscopes and biochip tests.

In vitro diagnostic medical device companies are also leading the charge, according to the report. These device makers are partnering with IT companies to allow laboratories quicker, more efficient access to diagnostic data and genomics.

Major payers have a role as well, according to Kalorama. Large insurers such as Aetna, UnitedHealth and Kaiser Permanente seek more personalized care, and are also seeking out partnerships in the IT and research space.

Aetna, for instance, is in talks with Apple to provide Apple Watches to enrollees.

Payers are investing in projects that can identify health biomarkers earlier as part of preventive care, too, according to the report. Big data analytics can allow those markers to be defined and flagged in screenings more quickly.

Future challenges for the industry include storage concerns, as more data is collected there may be fewer places to store it. Privacy policies may also need to be re-examined to allow researchers to take full advantage of patient data collections, according to the report.

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