Blockchain technology is nowadays acknowledged for having a revolutionary impact on healthcare forcing its digitalization and transformation. It is taking place worldwide with the most outstanding projects of blockchain technology in healthcare to be discussed below. If you have ever wondered where to hire a blockchain developer for your healthcare startup, it’s time to boost your search, since the blockchain technology is taking its place in the development of modern health industry all over the world.
What is the Blockchain Technology?
As digitalization of all industries has started to expand within a decade, the blockchain entered the global market at the end of 2016 (although in fact it was invented back in 2008, but not widely used). It has touched a wide number of industries bound with technology, information technologies, and AI.
The concept of the blockchain itself is simple, it is a network of blocks that is continuously growing and changing, adapting to the specific industry needs and their peculiarities. The blockchain is based on the distributed ledgers which contain information or facts. In other words, a block is a record of new transactions (medical data like medical device logs, patient vitals, a temperature of medicinal products during shipment, or the location of cryptocurrency). When the new block is completed, it is added to the chain of previously created blocks. In such a way, a huge system of blocks with facts is created, where information is stored and can be accessed anytime.
Another possibility of blockchain technology is the Smart Contract that is able to perform specific actions with the data stored in the blocks, for example, search for the date of record or transactions and determine the upcoming actions that might take place. In this way, smart contracts help to exchange money, property or shares via blockchain. They automatically define the rules and penalties for each agreement and enforce obligations.
When it comes to measuring blockchain technology on a global scale, we must point out that from the time it was used to support Bitcoin and the rise of cryptocurrency in 2017 that followed, blockchain technology has influenced many industries, not only the crypto world. The blockchain-related products and services market is expected to reach $7.7 billion by 2022, which is $242 million more from last year’s prediction.
In the financial sphere, banks use the blockchain as a decentralized ledger for more secure and faster transactions.
In the information technology industry, blockchain is used as a basis for digital storages, software programs, data platforms etc. The profession of the blockchain developer is gaining popularity, while more and more companies tend to use the technology in their business.
Moreover, blockchain will alter the entire approach in consulting, research, analysis, and forecasting. Global decentralized prediction markets are already in process of creation.
In the energy industry, companies are using blockchain to implement more efficient peer-to-peer distribution of electrical energy. For example, there are startups that allow people to generate their own electricity and sell it directly to neighbors.
What Has Blockchain Changed in Healthcare
Healthcare and medicine is also undergoing changes due to the blockchain. The classical technology used in healthcare is centralized. However, the sphere is now experiencing benefits of the decentralized system as well. For example, storing of various medicine-related data has become more secure due to blockchain. Moreover, many blockchain healthcare software providers have already entered the healthcare market.
Improvements of the medicine manufacturing process and control are also blockchain related now. As an area of continuous concern, blockchain technology offers a way to strengthen the process by recording & storing the parameters and delivering an auditable trail of production and shipment with automated decisions.
There are many ways how blockchain and healthcare are connected and can interact. In terms of temperature control, that is vital for pharmaceutical products – as they should be stored under a specific temperature range which is essential to keep across warehouse, shipment, and dispensing – this information should be tracked throughout the whole supply chain with temperature loggers transmitting the temperature history to a blockchain, where Smart Contracts determine the stability of the product.
The blockchain is also already used for file transfers in clinical trials, patients data and pharmaceutical history storage, creation and maintenance of the blockchain network with patients, physicians, and payers with further determination of CMN by means of Smart Contracts, thus avoiding intermediation.
The Most Innovative Blockchain Projects in Healthcare
Among the most innovative projects involving blockchain for healthcare, there are many blockchain healthcare startups, the most prominent of them are as following:
- MedRec, saves the digital family history of medical records by means of the blockchain.
- The MediLedger uses blockchain to strengthen the track-and-trace capabilities for prescription medicine. Which is more, it allows users to create an interoperable system for identification and tracking specific prescription drugs, this meeting law and operational needs of the industry.
- ConnectingCare is a blockchain based platform for providers together from different clinical organizations to access the same data for shared patients. This project is credible and adoptable by healthcare industry that will boost the development of the healthcare data marketplace.
- Robomed Network is a blockchain based medical network aimed to provide the most effective medical care. It will connect patients and healthcare service providers by means of Smart Contracts. It is expected to boost the shift of healthcare to value-based care (when a patient pays for results instead of paying for procedures). Robomed already has nearly 9,000 patients and 30,500 services.
Regarding the use of technology in healthcare in the near future, blockchain will become one of the crucial drivers along with IoT and machine learning to trigger new and more effective digital processes. It will revolutionize healthcare. In fact, it has already started to do so. With the development and prevalence of blockchain technology, it will become easier to convince healthcare providers to deploy the technology for the smart storing of data, different transactions, temperature and complex software-driven medical appliances control, patient care and research.
Conclusion
Due to the rapid development of blockchain, the healthcare industry has already become blockchain-oriented with many companies in the sphere tending to implement it within their business. This includes not only pharmaceutical companies but also hospitals and healthcare institutions where the use of blockchain will lead to faster and more efficient problem-solving.
Article written by Mobilunity