The blockchain revolution is here to change our lives. And it has made its way into the healthcare industry. Healthcare Rallies for Blockchain, a study from IBM, found that over half of surveyed healthcare executives have solid plans to implement a commercial blockchain solution. Healthcare companies, tech innovators and the rest of the healthcare industry are all talking about the ways blockchain could solve our future problems. This incredibly exciting new technology can help, and even if it won’t be a total cure for the healthcare system, but it would certainly be a step in the right direction.

In a What Is Blockchain Technology? And How Does It Work? 5 Necessary Takeaways article we’ve already talked about this amazing technology and how we can use it to our advantage. But, as it always is with new technology, the full possibilities of what may transpire in the future is unknown at this time. 

Don Tapscott, the bestselling author of “Wikinomics”, and his son, blockchain expert Alex Tapscott, write in their revelatory book “Blockchain Revolution: How the Technology Behind Bitcoin Is Changing Money, Business, and the World” that, as with major paradigm shifts that preceded it, blockchain technology will create winners and losers. 

Don and Alex think that blockchain is also essential to understand if you’re an artist who wants to make a living off your art, a consumer who wants to know where that hamburger meat really came from, an immigrant who’s tired of paying big fees to send money home to your loved ones, or an entrepreneur looking for a new platform to build a business. And those examples are barely the tip of the iceberg. They bring us a brilliantly researched, highly readable, and essential book about the technology driving the future of the economy.

And taking this idea back to our healthcare system, as quoted also in a Wired article, “Now is probably the right time in our history to take a fresh approach to data sharing in health care,” says John Halamka, chief information officer at Boston-based Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center. So, let’s find out how blockchain holds the potential to revolutionize healthcare and how we can use it today.

Time to get ready for the future: how blockchain holds the potential to revolutionize healthcare 

Future is totally not waiting for us, we have to adapt and embrace the new changes and create a better and safer world for all of us. And improving the healthcare system has to be our priority. So why not use blockchain in our advantage since it has the potential to revolutionize healthcare? 

Fortunately the people leading this industry are aware of this opportunity and are ready to try to move the healthcare system in the right direction. In a survey made by the Black Book “Emerging Tech Vendors” about 70% of health plan and health system IT executives said blockchain holds significant promise for health care interoperability. The Deloitte Center for Health Solutions came to a similar conclusion when its researchers examined the potential use of blockchain for health plans — outlining six use cases where this emerging technology could be applied by insurers to improve current standard operating procedures while enhancing the customer experience. So, there is just one question remaining for people working, investing and leading the healthcare system: are you ready for the future?

5 potential uses of blockchains in healthcare

Even though using blockchain can be really useful for your company, it is always a challenge to determine where to apply this technology. But rather than adopting blockchain and searching for an application, our recommendation is to identify a challenge first, and then think about how it might be solved using technology. To help you, following are five ways how blockchain can be used:

  1. Patient records: Normally we have access to a small amount of data about our health history, but blockchain could help pull together a lifetime of transactions from multiple health systems, pharmacies and health plans. Using this technology patients and doctors can have detailed information about procedures, diagnoses or prescriptions that can all be updated with time.
  2. Supply chains: Now with the Coronavirus pandemic, we have examples of certain biologics, like vaccines, that have to be kept at a precise temperature or used in a just a few days. And blockchain can help in guarding against counterfeit or substandard products, as well as, capturing and recording biologics prescriptions and requests or interactions with regulators.
  3. Medical Research: Blockchains could provide the access to make medical innovation quicker. It is almost impossible for a human to process all the data gathered in a medical research, so using this technology to centralize the results of clinical trials and patient outcomes for new treatment protocols can improve care and patient outcomes.
  4. Data Security: Between 2015-2016, 140 million patient records were breached according to Protenus Breach Barometer report. With the growth of connected devices and the Internet of Medical Things (IoMT), existing health IT architecture is struggling to keep systems secure. Blockchain can keep health data private and secure, as already proven in the financial system. 
  5. Payments: We all have evolved from accepting payments only via cash to building cashless economies. With the adoption of multiple digital payment methods, people have begun to accept this money exchange system. With the mass adoption of decentralised technology, people realised the benefits of payments via blockchain. Blockchain payment facilitates fast, secure, low-cost international payment processing services (and other transactions) through the use of encrypted distributed ledgers that provide trusted real-time verification of transactions without the need for intermediaries such as correspondent banks and clearinghouses. With blockchain payment systems, one can:
  • Settle transactions more easily
  • Maintain the authenticity of the transactions without the presence of middle-men
  • Facilitate peer-to-peer transfers or payments
  • Save the transaction data securely
  • Develop a cryptocurrency wallet quickly and use it for payments

So, are you ready for this new era? Are you ready to challenge the present and embrace the change of the future? Let’s work together to create a better world for everybody. Together, we’ll enhance every process that needs improvement and automate what can be automated. Together we can change the healthcare system and help your business become the best partner for your client. Drop us a line and make Ventivo Group your technological partner!