BlockChain
Blockchain technology is a game-changer with the potential to impact not one or two industries, but the complete landscape of how business is done.
Tezos : Tezos is a multi-purpose blockchain which aims to combine a self-amending protocol and on-chain governance to manage future changes and implementations to the network. It supports the creation of new tokens and smart contracts (thus decentralized applications or dApps).
Tezos founded and on-chain governance design Arthur Breitman first proposed Tezos in a position paper released in Aug. 2014. He later released a white paper in Sept. 2014 that detailed more specifics about the project.
Healthcare : When 200 healthcare executives were surveyed, 16 percent expect to have a commercial blockchain solution at scale sometime this year. The key players for blockchain adoption will be regulators, industry groups and market makers. Managing and securing data within healthcare and supply chain management are two great examples of principal concepts influencing and being impacted by possible blockchain adoption.
Better data sharing between healthcare providers means a higher probability of accurate diagnoses, more effective treatments, and the overall increased ability of healthcare organizations to deliver cost-effective care.
Advantages and Issues :
- Network infrastructure security at all levels
- Identity verification and authentication of all participants
- Uniform patterns of authorization to access electronic health information
- DLT can be applied in many healthcare areas, but all activity within healthcare is not linked to transactions
- The blockchain code lays it open to zero day attacks and bugs, as well as social engineering.
- Blockchain technology should not be used indiscriminately in healthcare, since its data is immutable. Large files, or those which change often, may be kept out. All identifying data should be kept off the chain.
Applications In Healthcare:
- Managing electronic medical record (EMR) data
- Protection of healthcare data
- Personal health record data management
- Point-of-care genomics management
- Electronics health records data management
Data security
From 2009 to 2017, over 176 million data breaches occurred with respect to healthcare records. The secure features associated with the blockchain can help protect health information much better. Each individual has a public identifier or key and a private key, which can be unlocked only as and for the period necessary.
Health insurance claims
The blockchain is uniquely adapted to claim processing because of its ability to present medical events as they occurred, without the potential for changing the data at a later stage for purposes of fraud.
Security Vulnerabilities
The technology provides resilience to certain types of attacks but are by no means entirely secure. Since they are essentially just code, they are still susceptible to zero day attacks and technical bugs. Also, the technology is almost always accessed by people, making it susceptible to one of the greatest risks in information technology, social engineering. Due to this, the technology needs just as much scrutiny towards information security as any other network or piece of software, especially for blockchain in healthcare.
Tracking Payments and Billing Models
Blockchain tracking of tests, results, medical billing, and payments by patients as well as systems like Medicare could reduce fraud and even save us money by eliminating middlemen meant to track the flow of information through systems.
Supply Chain Management
One of the most universally applicable aspects of blockchain technology is that it enables more secure and transparent monitoring of transactions. With blockchain, the transactions can be documented in a permanent decentralized record — reducing time delays, added costs and human errors.
Food Security
Blockchain technology, coupled with the concept of food security, will be a constant in the coming years, as the combination is synonymous with a healthier and better quality supply chain. The reason for this is blockchain’s ability to ensure the traceability of food from its origin until it reaches the end customer.
This increased safety in the value chain, which is key to preserving the quality of these foods, is also great news for consumers, who are increasingly interested in knowing everything regarding the products that reach their tables.
Improved quality. Controlling every step taken by an item of food from production to final sale, via processing, packaging, storage and transport, improves its quality, since it reaches the end consumer in perfect condition. The end consumer will also know that they have a product in their hands that has not been impacted in any way that could put their health at risk. Therefore, an increase in the quality of the process ensures a reduction in health risks.
Less fraud. Blockchain ensures that there are no intrusions into food traceability. In other words, the possibility of fraudulent or deceptive practices is curbed at all stages through which the product passes on its way to the end consumer
Optimized production. A greater understanding of the entire process that an item of food runs through from production to sale will result in the information needed to save both costs and time.
The Issue of sustainablity
As stated earlier, environmental sustainability has also become a purchasing factor for end consumers, who do not want to participate in production processes that are harmful to the environment. At this point, the information and security provided by blockchain can help production companies carry out practices that are less harmful to the environment, in agriculture as well as livestock and fisheries.
The food industry is pursuing the efficiency and reduction of its carbon footprint, and when introducing these systems into its operation, this must also be considered. Along these lines, this is expected to be overcome over time and information management systems will be developed in the chains that have a smaller environmental impact.
In any case, agencies like the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) are clear that the future is in blockchain technology. This “will allow food to be traced back to its origin in seconds and will use new data analysis techniques to strengthen the prevention of foodborne diseases, alerting consumers in real time before contaminated or mislabeled foods are consumed.”