Is Blockchain Interested in Healthcare?

The healthcare industry in particular stands to benefit immensely from blockchain. The amount of information that needs to be continuously updated and transferred in healthcare, as well as the amount of people that need controlled access to it, makes blockchain an ideal solution for industry woes.

Some experts consider blockchain to be the next iteration of the internet, and its impact is going to be just as revolutionary.

Many industries have already begun using blockchain because it offers near instantaneous transfer speeds, immutability of its records, transparency, reduced costs, and much better security than other alternatives.

The healthcare industry in particular stands to benefit immensely from blockchain. The amount of information that needs to be continuously updated and transferred in healthcare, as well as the amount of people that need controlled access to it, makes blockchain an ideal solution for industry woes.

One of the major problems in healthcare is the updating and sharing of patient records. Because patients often need the expertise of multiple doctors, nurses, and administrators — sometimes across multiple facilities — their records might not get to where they are needed in time and they might not have all of the updated information.

In the current state of the field, this creates numerous problems and might even lead to patients receiving less than acceptable care. However, with blockchain, medical professionals can access the relevant records, update them, and make them available to all relevant parties within seconds. Of course, this is vastly more efficient than the way it is done now.

Another big problem for the healthcare industry is training and staying certified. As of now, the process for this is time consuming and can be inconvenient, but via the blockchain, courses of all sorts can be offered, making it much easier to access and fit the demanding schedules of medical professionals. From webinars to online lectures and live streaming to interactive course work, staying up to date is about to get much easier.

Furthermore, blockchain can be used to facilitate the job search, for both those looking and hiring. Blockchain allows medical professionals to connect and search for job postings and applicants based on specific criteria, all with real time updates, ease of access, and security. This will allow the more efficient allocation of specialized labor and applicants will be able to find a much better fit for their skills.

Credentialing can also be cumbersome for the medical field, especially if medical professionals work at more than one facility. Today, the medical field requires numerous administrators and staff to process the behind the scenes paperwork.

This way, doctors, nurses, hospital administrators, etc. can request and provide credentials as needed with the guarantee that they are verified and up to date.

Some healthcare companies are already turning to blockchain. For example, Austin-based Intiva Health is using blockchain, particularly Hashgraph, to do all of the above.

Their goals are to streamline healthcare in as many countries as possible. In fact, they are negotiating with the governments of numerous countries to figure out the best way to make their healthcare systems vastly more efficient.

Before long, every healthcare company throughout the world will be using blockchain in some form, benefitting both healthcare professionals and patients.