13 Ways in which Blockchain will Transform the Healthcare Industry by 2020

The World Bank suggests that half of the world’s population lacks proper healthcare facilities. The international health agency released a press statement stating that even among the affluent, about 800 million people spend at least 10% of their household budgets on health expenses for themselves, a sick child or family member.

It, therefore, becomes the need of the hour to implement technologies which will drive costs down and make healthcare more ubiquitous and affordable. It is not a surprise that blockchain is considered as a superior and leading option in this pursuit.

Pushpalata Patel, an analyst at BIS Research said “Around 14% of healthcare organizations are expected to have a blockchain based system in place by the end of 2018, while 70% are expected to have invested in getting the technology on-board by 2020. Various successful use-cases of blockchain have already been piloted, ranging from tracking of consent in clinical trials, development of healthcare information exchange platforms, to pharma supply chain solutions. Healthcare data exchange, health insurance, and clinical trials are expected to witness large disruption in the coming years.”

Some of the prominent highlights of various researches conducted in this field are:

• Up to $100 -$150 billion could be saved per year in data breaches, IT, support functions and overheads, by 2025, with the adoption of blockchain technology
• The use of blockchain for healthcare data exchange will reach a value of $1.89 billion by the year 2025
• Blockchain technology used in supply chain functions is estimated to save about $43 billion annually for pharma companies

Why are so many healthcare organizations making a shift to blockchain as a technology?

Here are 13 ways in which blockchain can transform the healthcare industry

1. Artificial Intelligence (AI) based medical treatments

There are a lot of background processes that take place in a patient’s diagnosis taking up a large chunk of time from the doctors/physicians. They are-

• Gathering of data through patient interviews and tests
• Processing and analyzing results
• Using multiple sources of data to come to an accurate diagnosis
• Determining an appropriate treatment method (often presenting options)
• Preparing and administering the chosen treatment method
• Patient monitoring
• Aftercare, follow-up appointments etc.

AI in medicine refers to the use of automated processes using artificial intelligence in the diagnosis and treatment of patients. Using AI most of these background processes have been made and easy increasing time for doctor-patient interaction. It also generates AI based diagnosis for patient symptoms and reduces human errors.

2. Decentralized data ensuring ease of access

The decentralized method of storing data enables accessing and exchanging information online without the need for third-party services and brokers. This saves a significant amount of time and effort.

3. Reduction of medical errors with the help of blockchain

Every year, a startling 251,000 Americans die due to medical errors in the form of misdiagnosis, improper care, and so on. Healthcare institutions are turning to blockchain combined with AI neural network solutions to minimize human intervention and mitigate human error.
Blockchain allows for secure storage of genomic data, which can then be accessed for making guided decisions.

4. Helps in physician credentialing

Credentialing is the process by which health organizations validate the legitimacy of licensed health care professionals, assess their backgrounds and verify their qualifications

The first critical step in this regard is validating data from primary sources. Encrypted mechanisms are used by blockchain technology to authenticate primary source organizations. After authentication, the primary source organization will save physician information including degrees, certifications, and licenses on the ledger in an encrypted format. Once accepted and integrated, the information becomes immutable, making this record the single source of truth that can be trusted by all organizations and individuals.

5. Promotes collaboration between medical stakeholders

With the same data made available to all stakeholders — physicians, insurance agencies, and health and wellness institutes, a more personalized and holistic treatment plan and insurance plan can be devised for a patient.

6. Incentivizes patients to contribute towards improving healthcare models

Tokenization of services incentivizes patients and ecosystem stakeholders to partake in activities like pursuing healthier lifestyle activities (i.e. better diet, more exercise, fewer vices) or sharing healthcare data with the medical and insurance community.

7. Controlled and secure medical records

The blockchain securely stores health records and maintains a single version of the record. Different medical organizations and individuals can request permission to access a patient’s record from the blockchain. Unlike the traditional format, the patient has total control over who he wants to give access to.

8. Impact on Electronic Health Records (EHRs)

EHRs are used to generate and store patient data in order to provide better care solutions. However, in the traditional system, different EHRs do not communicate with each other effectively, and the patient’s health records have to be mailed or faxed.

Blockchain solves this problem by eliminating the need for multiple EHRs and provides one single database which has all the information pertaining to the patient. Moreover, this helps in deepening the security and gives the patient the power to decide who gets to access his information.

9. Real-time diagnosis of ailments

Blockchain enables the possibility of performing a biometric diagnosis at home, using a smart dispenser. This eliminates the need to visit a center giving instant diagnosis will help the patient to access instant treatment.

10. Improve healthcare for the poor

Most developing countries still follow a paper-based model of storing medical records. It also makes keeping a track of vaccination history difficult. This becomes a problem in countries with constant economic or political instability.

Blockchain technology will help maintain a single record which has all the information regarding the vaccines that have been administered and are still due to be administered to a child.

11.Used to establish identity

In under-developed and developing countries, children without birth certificates can be denied access to education and healthcare. This can further hinder employment or access to assistance programs. Blockchain comes to the rescue by maintaining a record of every citizen in the country.

12.Billing management

Blockchain’s security and auditability makes it an ideal choice for payment processing. Since intermediaries are eliminated, so are administrative overheads. This automatically speeds up the payment process. Smart contracts can catch billing anomalies and trigger payment of legitimate claims using sophisticated and customized algorithms.

13.Disrupt traditional insurance

Insurance agencies are turning to blockchain’s immutable ledger to prevent insurance fraud and risk detection. Also, through blockchain, medical records can be cryptographically secured and shared between health providers, increasing interoperability in the health insurance ecosystem.

Blockchain technology will revolutionize the health and wellness industry by promoting interoperability, security, and cost-effectiveness. According to a study by IBM, more than 50% of global healthcare executives expect to implement commercial blockchain solutions by 2020.

With various successful use-cases already piloted, healthcare data exchange, health insurance, and clinical trials are expected to witness large disruption by the year 2020.

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