Integrating multiple blockchains to support distributed personal health records

• Published in: Health informatics journal 2021-04, Vol.27 (2), p.14604582211007546-14604582211007546
• Main Authors: Roehrs, Alex, da Costa, Cristiano A, Righi, Rodrigo R, Mayer, André H, da Silva, Valter F, Goldim, José R, Schmidt, Douglas C
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Blockchain; Medical records; Personal health
• ISSN: 1460-4582; 1741-2811
• DOI: 10.1177/14604582211007546

Blockchain technologies have evolved in recent years, as have the use of personal health record (PHR) data. Initially, only the financial domain benefited from Blockchain technologies. Due to efficient distribution format and data integrity security, however, these technologies have demonstrated potential in other areas, such as PHR data in the healthcare domain. Applying Blockchain to PHR data faces different challenges than applying it to financial transactions via crypto-currency. To propose and discuss an architectural model of a Blockchain platform named “OmniPHR Multi-Blockchain” to address key challenges associated with geographical distribution of PHR data. We analyzed the current literature to identify critical barriers faced when applying Blockchain technologies to distribute PHR data. We propose an architecture model and describe a prototype developed to evaluate and address these challenges. The OmniPHR Multi-Blockchain architecture yielded promising results for scenarios involving distributed PHR data. The project demonstrated a viable and beneficial alternative for processing geographically distributed PHR data with performance comparable with conventional methods. Blockchain’s implementation tools have evolved, but the domain of healthcare still faces many challenges concerning distribution and interoperability. This study empirically demonstrates an alternative architecture that enables the distributed processing of PHR data via Blockchain technologies.