With each passing day, blockchain technology is turning out to be disruptive helping enterprises transition to optimization and enhancing the security of the businesses. Back in time, a blockchain survey was conducted in 2018, around 84% of the organizations are making use of distributed ledgers.
Surprisingly, blockchain is not confined to solely one or two industries these days but has expanded to numerous other industries as well. Similar is the case with blockchain. Along with the other industries, blockchain is achieving great strides in the healthcare industry and helping the professionals out there.
As far as the healthcare industry is concerned, the blockchain industry is ranked as the 4th major interest. In addition to this, the International Association for trusted blockchain applications paved the way for all the stakeholders to have a practical discussion on the role of blockchain technology in the healthcare industry.
Let us understand how blockchain has revolutionized the healthcare industry in the sections mentioned below.
Blockchain and Healthcare Data
It is obvious that not all the data and information can be stored in the blockchain. Fortunately, healthcare professionals and others can manage the data with the distributed ledger more transparently and securely.
For instance, let us suppose that IBM is disrupting veterinary medicine by creating and storing USDA certificates. But this is not all. Along with this, the healthcare businesses can store proofs of ownership and timestamps of environmental conditions which is pivotal for the logistics for those who are indulged in the pharmaceutical field.
If blockchain technology is used more precisely, then it can also track the patient’s health by way of smartwatches and fitness trackers. In addition to this, one major difficulty faced by the healthcare industry is evaluating the risks and calculating the premiums. The best way to minimize this is by connecting the devices with the EHRs throughout a lifetime makes it highly efficient.
Covid-19 and Healthcare
The real significance of healthcare came into the limelight when the world faced the biggest health crisis and death stuck people on their faces. The covid-19 pandemic made people realize how crucial their health is and no matter how busy one is, one has to maintain one’s health.
From 11% to 46%, it is a covid-19 pandemic that accelerated the usage of telemedicine. The U.S consumer began adopting it. As per the recent data, around $250 billion of current US spending on healthcare services can be virtualized.
When blockchain is being used in healthcare, then along with record keeping, there comes the digital asset market which goes on to increase efficiency. There is no doubt in this that blockchain technology is improving the healthcare industry to a significant extent.
Why Incorporate Blockchain into the Healthcare Industry?
It is the lack of a central administrator which is the most significant reason for introducing blockchain into the healthcare industry. It is pretty easy for almost anyone to access the system and corrupt the data within in case the database contents are stored in the physical memory of the system.
Fortunately, now you can revolutionize your healthcare by making use of blockchain technology. Incorporating blockchain can streamline your medical records and make their sharing secure.
Numerous large organizations are investing a great deal of savings in blockchain technology in numerous industries including healthcare. The technologies that stand to revolutionize the healthcare industry are AR & VR, artificial intelligence, blockchain, and robotics. It is the technological advancements that have opened the doors toward a healthier society.
Benefits of Blockchain for the Healthcare Industry
Patient data management
The foremost benefit of blockchain technology for the healthcare industry is that it assists in managing and storing the patient’s data. With blockchain technology, there’ll be no data breaches and no data disclosures.
But thanks to the blockchain it provides the healthcare industries with a unified platform for managing and storing data. It not only manages the data but also keeps it secure and under full control.
Electronic health records
Before the advent of blockchain, the healthcare industry consisted of numerous medical errors and all due to poorly coordinated care. But the advent of blockchain gave a new dimension to the healthcare industry.
With blockchain technology, healthcare professionals can connect medical records to electronic medical record software. Be it a prescription, medical note, or lab result, blockchain can keep everything digital and secure.
Drug traceability
Whether the patient has consumed some drugs or not can easily be figured out with the help of blockchain technology. Blockchain technology can trace even the slightest drug to its roots.
The blocks containing the drug will have a hash which will be linked to the other block and also a timestamp that cannot be altered. Moreover, the transactions in the blockchain will be visible to the authorized parties only which makes room for tracking the drug’s movements from one party to another.
The medicine buyers can also ensure whether the products purchased are authentic or not by scanning the QR code. Consequently distributing the fake drug will be next to impossible in such a scenario.
Cryptocurrency payments
The next benefit of blockchain in the healthcare industry is cryptocurrency payments. Some numerous hospitals and dispensaries have started accepting payments in cryptocurrencies and other digital modes. Once you are done with receiving medical assistance, you can make the payments in cryptocurrency.
Another idea for making the payment via blockchain is micropayment. They are unique value-based models rewarding patients by doctor’s instructions and sticking to their lifestyles. The micropayment model will record every detail about the patient concerning the treatment but only if you are operating in the specific blockchain.
Supply chain transparency
Supply chain transparency is another benefit of blockchain in the healthcare industry. The system which is based on the blockchain can easily track items from manufacturing to every stage with the help of the supply chain. Consequently, there comes complete transparency and visibility into the system.
Supply chain transparency is the best fit for the healthcare industries that are still in the developing stage. It is a must-have for the medical appliances as these are rapidly increasing with the remote health monitoring and also catching up the interest of the bad actors. Some of the crucial uses of blockchain when used in combination with AI include:
Increases customer confidence- There is a significant increase in customer confidence due to the tracking end-to-end provenance, integration with wholesalers, manufacturers, and many more.
Supply chain optimization- Healthcare companies tend to apply AI to predict the demand much better and optimize the supply accordingly once all the data is in place.
How to Employ Blockchain in Healthcare?
Employing blockchain in the healthcare industry is no more an option but has become a necessity these days. The legacy systems of healthcare urge for an extensive infrastructure transition. But bringing both of these together will not be an easy thing as there are lots of challenges.
Fortunately, no worries as Skilled Pragati is empowering companies looking for innovative solutions. The best way to employ blockchain in the healthcare industry is to choose the BaaS model. In addition to this, you can also deploy its network and collaborate with multiple partners to improve the sharing of medical information between service providers and data owners.
How Employing Blockchain Will Affect the Cost of Healthcare?
The overwhelming amount of duplicate data is what adds up to the additional storage cost. Above all, there are around 50 different electronic healthcare record systems that are to be operated in multiple hospitals.
For instance, Medrec, made by the MIT team, offers an accessible and transparent view of medical history. The project is operated on the Ethereum blockchain and is undergoing development with a newly established healthcare established information center.
Wrapping Up
Without any doubt, blockchain technology is going to prove an instrumental role in the healthcare industry. Healthcare professionals will be able to track the health of their patients more accurately and precisely with blockchain platforms and technology. Schedule your consultation with the experts at Skilled Pragati and get started with blockchain development.