A Prototype of Decentralized Architecture Using Blockchain for Medical Records and Research: A Case Study of a Private Hospital Group in Thailand
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Abstract
- In Information Technology (IT), Blockchain does not only benefit economic but also greatly benefits other domains, such as scientific, political and medical. It provides a new solution with lower-cost, higher-scalability and greater-security for storing and controlling access to massive data. In medical domain, shifting from typical paper-based to electronic health records results in an increasing number of health data. Such health data, also collected by today’s personal ubiquitous computing devices (e.g., smart-watches and phones), are very useful for preventive and proactive medical research. Therefore, health IT systems require a new architecture to record medical information. This article presents the design of a prototype of decentralized architecture for medical record using private Blockchain. As a case study of this research, the largest group of private hospitals in Thailand has been collaborating with us in providing their initial requirements for the design and implementation. Our design work involves the use of a private Blockchain and its smart contract as an access control manager to medical records. Different tools for Blockchain technologies are also reviewed. This article poses a next step towards the proof-of-concept in implementing Blockchain in Thailand as Blockchain-as-a-service (BaaS) for medical records.
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