Utilizing blockchain technology for IoT-based healthcare systems

Abstract

Recent years have witnessed a widespread interest in healthcare issues and the search for faster and safer service for patients. Electronic health record was established to provide advanced health services. Researchers seek to provide permanent and simplified ways to monitor patients remotely using remote patient monitors. One of these methods is the use of Internet of Things (IoT) devices, where the healthcare provider can monitor the patient remotely. However, with the current centralized electronic patient record system and increase in number of IoT devices, security and privacy issues have arisen, as some patients may not want to disclose their data, in addition to particular concerns or risks that affect the patient’s life. To reduce these issues, several studies have presented the use of blockchain technology as a trustworthy network of solutions to ensure patient information security and secure the transfer of IoT devices’ data. In this regard, this research is an attempt to present a new framework that facilitates the storage and transfer of patient data in the blockchain by merging the electronic health record and remote patient monitoring techniques into a single framework using Django. This framework allows the transfer of data from IoT devices to multiple peers, making use of the smart contract provided by the Ethereum platform.