[{"innerBlocks":[],"name":"core\/freeform","postId":1606,"blockType":{"name":"core\/freeform","keywords":[],"attributes":{"content":{"type":"string","source":"raw"},"lock":{"type":"object"}},"providesContext":[],"usesContext":[],"selectors":[],"supports":{"className":false,"customClassName":false,"reusable":false},"styles":[],"variations":[],"apiVersion":3,"title":"Classic","description":"Use the classic WordPress editor.","category":"text"},"originalContent":"On the infamous curve of the Gartner Hype Cycle, blockchain has crested the first hill.

That\u2019s not always good\u2014it means the technology has been overhyped, and the rush of euphoria is diminishing. The Trough of Disillusionment awaits.

But that\u2019s not all bad, contends key movers at the Convege2Xcelerate healthcare modernization conference, held Wednesday at Columbia University in New York. Now, the hard work begins, primarily to find use cases that will demonstrate the value of distributed ledger technology.

It\u2019s those use cases that show how the technology can solve a vexing problem in healthcare that will validate the technology, which is being tested in other industries but only in the early stages of research in healthcare, says Brian Behlendorf, executive director of Hyperledger, an umbrella project of open source blockchains and related tools.

\u201cWhen you talk about patient-centric information and data-driven health research, insurance determination, reduction in drug discovery costs or the supply chain, we need blockchain technology,\u201d he says. \u201cWith the two components\u2014distributed ledgers and smart contracts\u2014you can build on top of those.\u201d

More clarity is needed to communicate the fact that blockchain technology will facilitate a network of ledgers, \u201cso we\u2019re not talking about putting patient data on blockchains,\u201d Behlendorf added. \u201cWe can use ledgers to verify the integrity of this data.\u201d

For now, however, healthcare organizations are sifting through a lot of proposals and propositions that are far from ready for prime time, says Florence Hudson, special adviser to the Northeast Big Data Innovation Hub for Next Generation Internet at Columbia University.

\u201cYou get told that all this data is going to be on the blockchain,\u201d says Hudson, a former IBM vice president and chief technology officer. In healthcare, distributed ledger technology is more likely to hold \u201cdata about data\u2014why can\u2019t they be clear about that? The way that they say they\u2019re going, they\u2019re going to run into a regulatory buzzsaw.\u201d

Also See<\/b>: Heavy lifting ahead as healthcare works to achieve blockchain\u2019s potential<\/a>

\u201cPeople see a new tool and they\u2019re looking for a nail to hit,\u201d said Gil Alterovitz, who\u2019s on the faculty of Harvard Medical School specializing in biomedical informatics, and is with the Computational Health Informatics Program at Boston Children's Hospital. \u201cThat may not be the ideal use of it.\u201d

\u201cThe technology needs a use case, and the adoption of it will flow from there, says John Halamka, MD, CIO of Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, and chairman of the New England Healthcare Exchange Network (NEHEN).

However, the technology must be fully buttoned down and completely reliable, says Hudson, who draws a line between uses in other industries versus the use of it in healthcare.

She had a recent conversation with two longshoremen who could explain how blockchain technology was applicable to shipping; but she believes the technology is a long way from being trusted in healthcare.

\u201cIf there\u2019s misinformation in shipping, that\u2019s one thing. In healthcare, that\u2019s completely different,\u201d she said. \u201cProviders have to be sure that the information contained in a blockchain is immutable.\u201d

Patient privacy also may be at risk on current iterations of blockchain, even if only metadata may be stored on it, Halamka says. For example, a patient might have metadata on a blockchain only indicating which provider provided treatment, but if that provider specializes in addiction treatment or behavioral treatment, then protected patient health information could be deduced from that, he noted.","saveContent":"On the infamous curve of the Gartner Hype Cycle, blockchain has crested the first hill.

That\u2019s not always good\u2014it means the technology has been overhyped, and the rush of euphoria is diminishing. The Trough of Disillusionment awaits.

But that\u2019s not all bad, contends key movers at the Convege2Xcelerate healthcare modernization conference, held Wednesday at Columbia University in New York. Now, the hard work begins, primarily to find use cases that will demonstrate the value of distributed ledger technology.

It\u2019s those use cases that show how the technology can solve a vexing problem in healthcare that will validate the technology, which is being tested in other industries but only in the early stages of research in healthcare, says Brian Behlendorf, executive director of Hyperledger, an umbrella project of open source blockchains and related tools.

\u201cWhen you talk about patient-centric information and data-driven health research, insurance determination, reduction in drug discovery costs or the supply chain, we need blockchain technology,\u201d he says. \u201cWith the two components\u2014distributed ledgers and smart contracts\u2014you can build on top of those.\u201d

More clarity is needed to communicate the fact that blockchain technology will facilitate a network of ledgers, \u201cso we\u2019re not talking about putting patient data on blockchains,\u201d Behlendorf added. \u201cWe can use ledgers to verify the integrity of this data.\u201d

For now, however, healthcare organizations are sifting through a lot of proposals and propositions that are far from ready for prime time, says Florence Hudson, special adviser to the Northeast Big Data Innovation Hub for Next Generation Internet at Columbia University.

\u201cYou get told that all this data is going to be on the blockchain,\u201d says Hudson, a former IBM vice president and chief technology officer. In healthcare, distributed ledger technology is more likely to hold \u201cdata about data\u2014why can\u2019t they be clear about that? The way that they say they\u2019re going, they\u2019re going to run into a regulatory buzzsaw.\u201d

Also See<\/b>: Heavy lifting ahead as healthcare works to achieve blockchain\u2019s potential<\/a>

\u201cPeople see a new tool and they\u2019re looking for a nail to hit,\u201d said Gil Alterovitz, who\u2019s on the faculty of Harvard Medical School specializing in biomedical informatics, and is with the Computational Health Informatics Program at Boston Children's Hospital. \u201cThat may not be the ideal use of it.\u201d

\u201cThe technology needs a use case, and the adoption of it will flow from there, says John Halamka, MD, CIO of Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, and chairman of the New England Healthcare Exchange Network (NEHEN).

However, the technology must be fully buttoned down and completely reliable, says Hudson, who draws a line between uses in other industries versus the use of it in healthcare.

She had a recent conversation with two longshoremen who could explain how blockchain technology was applicable to shipping; but she believes the technology is a long way from being trusted in healthcare.

\u201cIf there\u2019s misinformation in shipping, that\u2019s one thing. In healthcare, that\u2019s completely different,\u201d she said. \u201cProviders have to be sure that the information contained in a blockchain is immutable.\u201d

Patient privacy also may be at risk on current iterations of blockchain, even if only metadata may be stored on it, Halamka says. For example, a patient might have metadata on a blockchain only indicating which provider provided treatment, but if that provider specializes in addiction treatment or behavioral treatment, then protected patient health information could be deduced from that, he noted.","order":0,"get_parent":{},"attributes":[],"attributesType":{"content":{"type":"string","source":"raw"},"lock":{"type":"object"}},"dynamicContent":""}]

Work beginning on blockchain, needs good healthcare use case

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