Blockchain and Health

Book excerpt: "The secure storage of medical records is vital to any healthcare system. Relying solely on centralized servers increases the likelihood of sensitive information going public. Transparency and increased security of Blockchain technology make it an ideal platform for storing medical records. Patients can safely store their privacy-sensitive information by securing their data on a Blockchain using cryptography. This enables them to share their medical information with any healthcare institution with their approval. The healthcare system is currently very fragmented, but if all users were to use a secure global database, the flow of information between them would be much faster. A great advantage of a global database is that clients do not have to tell their story every time. A medical specialist, for example, can see exactly what a patient has been through and what treatments and examinations have taken place. The information is also available in real time to the healthcare professional the client has indicated to have access to his file. A new revolution is taking place that is clearly different from the third industrial revolution (Internet, communication and globalization). This fourth industrial revolution involves a fusion of technologies such as biotechnology, nanotechnology, artificial intelligence, robotics, the Internet of Things, cloud computing and Blockchain. Our healthcare society is also changing fundamentally, also under the influence of COVID-19. With this book in three chapters, we present the impact of Blockchain and digitization in healthcare with (1) a systematic literature review om implementing blockchain solutions in health care and organizational consequences, (2) Blockchain in health care and (3) transformation of elderly care and impact of digitalization"--