How Can Blockchain Technology Transform The Healthcare Sector?

Use of blockchain tech can speed up processes and provide security across healthcare systems. Dr Anandhi Ramachandran, Associate Professor, International Institute of Health Management Research, New Delhi reveals more.

Blockchain is a de-cen-tralised distributed digital archive collectively maintained by a network of computers, called nodes. One individual alone cannot modify the data. It requires permission from everyone else who maintain the particular record. Blockchain technologies have long been associated with cryptocurrencies as the primary method by which data integrity and security across networks have been successfully maintained. According to research portal, PRSnewswire, the global blockchain market is expected to be worth USD 20 billion by 2024. Financial firms such as banks, for example, often need to deal with vast amounts of complex data reconciliation and verification processes, which form a substantial cost to the firm’s annual revenue. Blockchain fundamentally shifts the platform to a shared and distributed database that can be shared across multiple organisations without compromising on data privacy. Permissions can be restricted based on user type and transactions recorded, updated and validated on all the nodes in a network simultaneously. This saves them USD 8-12 billion on an annualised basis. Blockchain applications to healthcare, in view of the increased use of digital systems to maintain electronic health records, finances and insurance claims, are also expected to return similar dividends.

How Blockchain works to benefit healthcare systems