Blockchain, and the digitization of health data through this new decentralized technology, could be the ground breaking solution for empowering patients and giving them better access to healthcare.
This so called ‘tokenization’ of health data, currently analyzed by Swiss-based HIT Foundation, will give patients greater ownership over their data and enables them to mobilize and monetize it.
“Tokenizing health data could support universal basic income (UBI) and enable the 3.8 billion people, which according to WHO statistics, still lack access to basic Healthcare services,” said Elizabeth Chee, COO of HIT Foundation.
UBI is a model for providing all citizens of a country or other geographic area with a given sum of money, regardless of their income, resources or employment status. The purpose of the UBI is to prevent or reduce poverty and increase equality among citizens. Tokenization of health data could support UBI initiatives, as links between inequality and poor health outcomes have long been established.
Healthcare professionals and researchers from around the world are already exploring how tokenizing personal health information will transform healthcare for good from detecting mental health, monitoring senior citizen’s health to ensuring patient safety with prescribed medication.
