Blood Management System based on Blockchain Approach: A Research Solution in Vietnam

Abstract

More and more new health care solutions are born based on the development of science and technology. The subjects who benefit the most, in this case, are not only patients (i.e., shorter healing time, faster recovery) but also medical staff, e.g., doctors/nurses (i.e., easy monitoring of the patient’s recovery process, proposing new treatment). However, there are still products that have not found an alternative: blood and blood products. Regardless of how science and technology can affect all aspects of patient treatment as well as medical care, blood still plays an important role in the treatment method. In addition to the above, blood and blood products may only be obtained from volunteers (i.e., blood donors). The preservation process is also very difficult, and no medical facility has enough facilities to preserve them. Therefore, the current process of blood preservation and transportation is done manually and contains many potential risks (e.g., data loss, personal information collection). In addition to the above barriers, developing countries (including Vietnam) also face many difficulties due to limited facilities. It is for this reason that this paper aims at a Blockchain-based technology solution for efficient management and distribution of blood from blood products. On the one hand, the paper contributes to the limitations in the information management process of storing and transporting blood and its products in the traditional database being applied in medical facilities in the cities and provinces in the Mekong Delta (the West-South of Vietnam). On the other hand, the article offers technology-based solutions to increase transparency and reduce the fear of centralized data storage (i.e., security and privacy issues). We also implement a proof-of-concept to evaluate the feasibility of the proposed approach.