Blockchain will aid healthcare in overcoming the pre-existing challenges.

The unprecedented COVID 19 situation has consequently led to the adoption of disruptive technologies like artificial intelligence and blockchain in the healthcare industry. Be it in the easier diagnosis of the diseases or using predictive analysis for the disease's prognosis, these technologies are lauded worldwide.

Many organizations are ushering to develop new drugs to contribute to medical advancements. The governments are heavily spending resources worth US$350 billion per year in drug discovery. With COVID 19 cases nearing almost 4 billion, organizations like Gilead, Moderna and Bharat Biotech are leveraging technologies for proactive drug development.

However, even before the COVID 19 outbreak staggered the healthcare infrastructure, the pharmaceutical industry felt the gnawing need for quicker drug discovery and development. Disruptive technologies like artificial intelligence and machine learning are leveraged in the past to access the molecular composition for medicines in Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, and cancer. The global pharmaceutical market exceeded US$ 42 billion in 2019 and is predicted to grow more than 14.7% CAGR between 2020 and 2026.

Moreover, with the COVID 19 outbreak, the flawed healthcare infrastructure is explicitly pointed out. Countries like the USA and India, which were lauded for their robust healthcare infrastructure, are now rendered to face flawed healthcare policies' harsh reality. With the dearth of healthcare professionals globally, it becomes lucid that a robust infrastructure can fail with a lack of human skills. Additionally, the integration of simple and complex technologies is needed in the healthcare IT market to cater to the high demands of vaccines and drugs. The health-IT market is a US$20 billion market, which is expected to rise by 15.3% between 2020-2026.

But as the market is involved, it is also prone to a security threat and technological limitations. The WHO has already warned about the vaccine supremacy that will arise with COVID 19. The privileged countries will try to dominate the pharmaceutical market to retain the vaccine. This will be a disadvantage for countries in South Africa and the Middle East, that have meagre funds and resources.

Moreover, in recent years, the healthcare industry is plagued by countless incidents of cybersecurity. A report by Healthcare and Cross-Sector Cybersecurity has pointed out that the healthcare infrastructure is targeted with phishing campaigns, emails, websites and ads, amidst Covid 19.

The report stated, "Significant security incidents have led to some hospitals reportedly postponing urgent surgical interventions and rerouting new patients to nearby hospitals. Healthcare organizations are thought to have been the target of aggressive cyberattack due to Covid-19 related treatment of patients, lab testing services, vaccine testing services, and biosafety labs."

Henceforth, a comprehensive strategical approach is paramount to mitigate such cyberattacks. Blockchain technology, also known as the digital ledger, can secure the healthcare infrastructure. Recognized as the most transparent technology, the data is stored across a network of systems. It comprises of blocks, which maintains the data entered by the user in every block. Also, every user is generated with and unique signature called a hash, whenever they enter the data into blockchain. This prevents the tampering of the data. Since it is a decentralised technology, the information is available for public view.

A report by Zion Market research states that the Global Blockchain technology in the healthcare market is expected to generate a revenue of more than US$1.4 billion. The report also cites that with the drug delivery, Blockchain technology will also ensure secured clinical data exchanges, supply chain management, billing and claim settlements.

Since the healthcare market is expected to take a significant leap in the future, here are the Blockchain solutions that will prevent cyberattacks and will ensure security.

Medicohealth 

It is a Blockchain-enabled database that allows safe and efficient communication between healthcare providers and patients by recording the data of every transaction in every block across the network of computers. It helps to fill the dearth of specialists and paramedical staff, by creating a doctor's license within the system. This will eliminate the patient's waiting time. Moreover, the medical records are stored in a decentralised system.

ClienTex

ClinTex is a solution provider to the pharmaceutical industry, and the team behind CTi – Clinical Trials Intelligence: a new type of software platform aimed at transforming the medicine development industry through the application of predictive analytics, machine learning, and the novel use of Blockchain technology and smart contracts in a clinical trial. The company aims to bring down the cost of medicine and improve the speed to market of new medicines for the people who need them, through vastly reducing development costs for the global pharmaceutical industry.

A full history of clinical trial key metrics is stored immutably on Clinical Trials Intelligence's decentralised ledger, where they are used by Clinical Trials Intelligence's App's to power bespoke predictive analytics algorithms in on-going trials on the platform. As Clinical Trials Intelligence is a fully integrated platform that provides end-to-end auditable workflow management & oversight in trials, all actions, including preventative and corrective actions (CAPA), are recorded on the Clinical Trials Intelligence blockchain on an on-going basis. This represents the creation of a clinical eco-system that enables interoperability and safe storage of all clinical trial data views while also addressing the privacy and security concerns of all stakeholders.

Outlook

As mentioned earlier, the COVID 19 pandemic has pointed out many flaws existing in the healthcare infrastructure. Blockchain Technology will aid the healthcare industry in overcoming these challenges. The integration of Blockchain into healthcare infrastructure has a promising outlook.