Gary Gottlieb is in a prime spot to see how technology companies are shaking up health care.

A trained psychiatrist who previously ran Partners Healthcare in Boston, one of the largest hospitals in the country, Gottlieb is currently CEO of Partners in Health, which focuses on taking care of poor people around the world. He's also an executive partner at venture firm Flare Capital Partners, working in an advisory role.

He pays close attention to how tech companies are jumping into the space where he has spent his career.

"Their excitement and interest in health care is wonderful," said Gottleib, in an interview.

Gottlieb's enthusiasm isn't shared by many of his peers, who are skeptical of the types of moves that Apple and Amazon are plotting in the medical space, ranging from breakthrough medical devices to mail-order pharmacies.

On a recent earnings call, Walgreens CEO Stefano Pessina summed up this position, telling analysts that Amazon has many "opportunities around the world and in other categories, which are much, much simpler than health care." In other words, Amazon will probably do a lot of other things before diving into the complex world of health care.