MONEY

Using technology to take control of your health care

Julie May
For The Tennessean
Blockchain provides a simple, secure way to process transactions and store information online, and it very well may revolutionize how we store and use health care information.

I attended JumpStart Foundry’s Health:Further Conference recently, and it was a goodie!

Speakers came from all over the country to talk about the state of health care and technology, and I heard a common thread through many talks: Health care is in a state of necessary evolution. The connectedness offered by both the Internet and the Internet of Things is pushing health care to innovate at a rapid pace. Think about how many apps and devices are now available for monitoring your health, such as smart watches or step trackers.

These devices and technologies are empowering us to understand and monitor our own health in ways we have never been able to do before. They also offer the promise that it should be easy to become better informed consumers of health care. Better yet, health care providers are beginning to realize that they have to cater to the end consumer, because we are the ones making the choices. Consumers are demanding more transparency around price, quality, and their own health information.

These days there is an expectation to be in control of all the information and our customer experiences, so it’s no surprise that consumers are now demanding the same kind of informed experience when it comes to health care. Here are a few examples of health care companies that are bringing a new experience to health care consumers:

  • HealthCare BlueBook – Did you know that a surgical procedure by the same physician can cost you drastically different amounts of money depending on the facility you get the procedure done?
  • Spruce – Download the app and experience telemedicine. You can visit a dermatologist by sharing photos and answering a few questions.  You’ll get a diagnosis and treatment plan plus prescriptions from a board-certified dermatologist. With your approval, they’ll send a report of your record to your primary care physician. All of this for $40.
  • InQuicker – Make appointments. I just made doctors visit. I went on the website, chose InQuicker, and it provided me times that week that were available for me to schedule. I provided some basic information in a secure online form. It sent me a calendar request to add to my calendaring application. No waiting on hold or going back and forth with a member of the staff to try to find an appointment months from now. 

Even so, we are still at the beginning in many ways, because the health care industry overall has been slow to adopt internet-related technology. A big part of the challenge facing health care? Protecting the security and privacy of your health and related financial data.

However, Health:Further reminded me about a particular technology that we all need to get our heads around — because it can make a positive impact on this very problem. Blockchain provides a simple, secure way to process transactions and store information online, and it very well may revolutionize how we store and use health care information.

Using blockchain drastically reduces the risk of hacking, fraud, and theft when you store or transmit data about personal health and financial details.

Here’s how blockchain works:

  1. Blockchain operates on an authorized network of computers.  
  2. As transactions happen, they are assigned unique digital codes, and then quickly bundled together into batches or blocks.
  3. These blocks are verified and replicated throughout the network in “chains.”
  4. Each change to a block creates an entry in a ledger.  The ledger is distributed to those in the authorized network. Everyone in the authorized network is notified of any change and each change is documented.  Anytime a transaction is moved or altered, everyone knows to check the ledger for updates.
  5. Because everyone in the authorized “gang” of computers gets the updates, all parties are up to date on who has what information, what the transaction consisted of and where the hand off occurred.

Using blockchain removes the need for a middleman to verify transactions — reducing the risk of fraud at that point, and speeding up the whole process at the same time.

I don’t know about you, but I am looking very forward more time and better holistic decisions resulting from a streamlined view of my medical records and information at the tips of all my approved health care providers.

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