2017 will probably be remembered as the year of the Bitcoin, as its price skyrocketed by more than 1300 % and new kinds of millionaires were introduced, the Bitcoin millionaires. Behind this hype lies a more interesting technology, Blockchain. According to Chen (2018), this technology has “the potential to change the way we live, work consume and interact”. An interesting and impactful use of the Blockchain might be in the healthcare industry, a huge industry that covers almost 20% of the US economy.
Nowadays, most healthcare providers store data on so-called legacy systems, which are not designed to share data. Apart from that, almost every hospital stores its data differently, which makes ‘connected healthcare’ almost impossible. Even though this might not seem that big of a deal at first, sharing medical data can reduce costs and even more important, improve patient care dramatically. Therefore, more transparency is needed, this is where Blockchain comes in. This technology can provide transparent data-sharing across institutions, as well as the security and privacy needed. Combining the already existing data may in the future create new insight and possible solutions to health problems that are devastating today. Furthermore, it may benefit the individual patient as well, since the records can be accessed at any time, giving doctors all the necessary information and making diagnoses even more comprehensive.
This is only one way Blockchain can transform the healthcare industry, others might include personalized medicine and better medical research. There are some challenges as well, however, such as the complexity of Blockchain and regulation, which is especially strict in healthcare. Nonetheless, most healthcare providers recognize that Blockchain has the power to reduce costs and improve the overall health care, which can support the rise of Blockchain in the healthcare industry.
Sources:
- https://hackernoon.com/how-blockchain-is-set-to-disrupt-the-healthcare-industry-in-2018-5d4fda455911
Thank you for your post Jody. It’s always very interesting to read about blockchain becoming increasingly relevant in various industries and going beyond cryptocurrencies. Very nice to see that even the healthcare industry and especially its patients are able to benefit from this technology, allowing a transparent and secure transfer of patient data. It actually surprised me that in today’s globalised society a ‘connected healthcare’ is impeded by the way hospitals save their data. Another advantage that comes to my mind when transferring patient data using blockchain is the fact that the entire process would be traceable as well.
Besides patient data, personalised medicine and medical research, blockchain could also be used to avoid healthcare-related insurance fraud. The requirement of blockchain regarding its verification of data, for example with medical claims, will provide a much more secure environment than it is today.
If regulations become adjusted accordingly, I think it’s just a matter of time that blockchain will be implemented in the healthcare industry and even more ways of use will be found.