Written By: – Dr. Amit Mishra

Insight into the Block Chain Aided NextGen Smart Health Care

In today’s modern business world, the adoption of the recent evolving new technologies, like Blockchain, Artificial Intelligence (AI) or Robotics, has marked a significant impact in almost every sector of the market. How can the fast-moving Health care industry remain untouched? According to Gartner, the world’s leading research and advisory company, the blockchain derived IoT (Internet of things) will include 26 billion devices and a $ 1.9 trillion (Rs 130.26 Lakh Crore) economy by the year 2020. By the year 2022, it is expected that single-handedly blockchain technology (BCT) would reach $13.96 billion (Approx. Rs 1 Lakh Crore) globally.

In recent years, despite the fact that Electronic health records (EHR) have digitized patient data still transmission of that data from one clinician to another remains a huge challenge! With an aim to secure sensitive healthcare ecosystem, the healthcare companies are leveraging towards Blockchain to lock data. Also, Blockchain is going to be helpful in transferring patient’s data from one corner of the world to another, ensuring patient’s insurance claim and administrative processes within healthcare networks which will revolutionize the patient’s care.

Blockchain offers a great entrepreneurial revolution in the Health care industry in India having its second position in the online market in the world. The supportive role of Modi 2.0 Government’s bureaucrats and NITI Aayog policies has raised a ray of hope for the rising blockchain technology in India.

Although Blockchain technology and  Electronic currency Bitcoin, conceptualized by Satoshi Nakamoto in the year 2008, has shown huge promise in transforming Health care industry across the world along with Finance, Governance, Supply chain management & Pharmaceuticals industries using cryptographic principles, however, the overall picture is still evolving.

In recent times, there have been great demands of Blockchain technology in the Gem Industry for the tracking and traceability opportunities of gems. The global food and agriculture market are also expecting significant benefits with the new technology.

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Contrary to the recent blitz made by the US president, Donald Trump, on Facebook’s Libra cryptocurrency project, the boost being received by Blockchain to the government services and economic well-being presents the very positive picture of the new technology. In the last few years, there has been a tremendous increase in the number of Startups backed by Blockchain technology with the US leading the row with the highest number of Blockchain Startups. Recently, one of the Health care startups (Solve. care) has made an announcement regarding the partnership with UberHealth to transport patients.

What is Blockchain?

A Blockchain is similar to the chain of blocks which contains information (or database). The linking of blocks is called mining. In simple terms, Blockchain is the process of sharing records of transactions. Bitcoin or digital currency or decentralized virtual cryptocurrency is a new form of money which can be used without banks, government or any other intermediaries.

How Blockchain works for transforming Healthcare Sector?

• As a Service provider by forming the Healthcare Value Chain. It aids directly in networking trading partners maintaining transparency or works as Open Source to access real-time transactional data in an organized manner reducing transaction costs.
• In decentralizing precision medicine as in the coming future personal healthcare will be on focus and the biological profile will be consumer controlled and OMICS data-centric.
• Securely locking of health records by maintaining a single statement of the patient’s health report. The accessibility of these immutable records are provided to doctors, hospitals, pharmacists, laboratories, and health insurers on their request to have the patient’s record to serve their purpose and record transactions on the distributed ledger maintaining autonomy.
• Creating a direct link between ongoing clinical research and users by permitting users to disseminate information directly to researchers using their platform built on the blockchain.
• Managing financial planning and analysis by providing payments in the package and getting insight into the patient’s post-treatment detail.
• For monitoring the traceability and transparency of drug to keep a check on counterfeit (illegal) drugs present in the market to avoid loss of genuine pharmaceutical companies.

Conclusion

With a mission to rediscover the healthcare business processes using modern tools and techniques, Blockchain technology, by improving communication and providing superior solutions to many existing age-old challenges in health care, is going to revolutionize the health care industry in the coming years.