Taipei Medical University Hospital has established an online healthcare platform driven by blockchain technology to integrate and improve record-keeping among medical institutions in the country.
Blockchain Healthcare Platform
As reported by Taipei Times, the project tagged “Healthcare Blockchain Platform”, is the result of the collaboration of over 100 community clinics, and is established to address issues currently plaguing the country’s healthcare system, such as patient referrals and transfer of patient personal and health records between health institutions.
Currently, inter-hospital transfers are a long and arduous process, and hospitals have referral counters where nurses have to assist patients with referral requests. But with this platform, patients will be able to access complete medical records and seek physician referrals by merely logging into a mobile app. While various medical institutions can request for and authorize a transfer of patient records, using smart contracts.
Speaking on the project, Chen Ray-Jade, Taipei Medical University Hospital Superintendent, had this to say:
Blockchain technology not only helps to combine electronic medical records with electronic health records from multiple hospitals and clinics, it also incorporates the additional security feature of notification and consent before any transfer takes place.
Chen also said that the decentralized nature of blockchain technology would greatly reduce the risk of data theft.
Also speaking on the development, Wang Yao-Ting, a physician at Zhuang Jing Clinic, said:
With access to all the medical and health data of a referred patient through blockchains, doctors can gain a better understanding of their general health.
Blockchain Adoption in the Health Sector
Apart from trading and logistics, blockchain technology is beginning to find increasing utility in the health industry. From securing patient records to combating fake pharmaceutical products, healthcare is fast becoming a popular real-world adoption arena for the emerging technology.
In Singapore, MetLife’s innovation center, LumenLab has started testing its automated insurance solution called Vitana. The app which is based on blockchain technology will offer automatic insurance payouts to pregnant women who have gestational diabetes. It is the first insurance product designed for gestational diabetes in the country, and one in five pregnant women in Singapore are diagnosed with this condition.
ALLIVE has partnered with Ontology to create an intelligent healthcare system powered by blockchain technology. The system which is geared towards lowering the cost of health care. There is an ID system – Olife which will be used to create and maintain patient profiles, as well as, an AI system – Olivia that will operate as a virtual medical care provider. There is also Oleaf an interface that will enable patients, medical practitioners, insurance companies and other stakeholders to work together using secure and reliable data.
