Open Health Network has launched PatientSphere platform that enables patients to control their health information.
Personalized Healthcare
A Silicon Valley technology start-up, Open Health Network, is using blockchain technology and smart contracts for the healthcare sector. The firm has launched PatientSphere, a blockchain based data sharing platform.
The launch was reported in an article published earlier on Thursday on website venturebeat.com. According to the firm’s website, PatientSphere offers, “HIPAA-compliant data-sharing capabilities to healthcare providers, medical researchers, pharmaceutical companies and health insurers.”
The solution uses Artificial Intelligence and data analytics along with blockchain to enable the creation of healthcare applications and chatbots. The users of the platform can include patients, healthcare providers, payers, and medical researchers. The company claims that the application enables patients to control and monetize their health-related information.
The Inspiration Behind the Platform
What inspired Tatyana Kanzaveli, CEO of Open Health Network, was the need for a platform which could consolidate healthcare records from different sources which operate in isolation. Kanzaveli is herself a cancer survivor.
According to Kanzaveli, a consolidated view will help provide useful insights. The platform uses machine learning to deliver treatment plans and exercise tips which are adaptive. Based on how the patient progresses, the personalized treatment advice changes.
“It’s extremely exciting that patients can now have visibility into all of their health care data and the ability to not only share it on their own terms but also get paid for it,” said Kanzaveli.
According to her, PatientSphere’s prescriptions are much more precise compared to standard rehabilitation and post-operative programs.
Data Source
The platform sources data from electronic medical records, mobile health applications, wearable devices, chatbots, and programs like Apple HealthKit and Google Fit. The data is consolidated in a dashboard and can be shared with doctors, clinicians, and specialists who may need access.
The firm claims that the data is presented in compliance with HIPPA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996), a US legislation that provides data privacy.
The platform also stores metadata making it possible to access old records with natural language queries. It also enables the patients to track their health data and treatment progress. Patients can also monetize the data if they wish to, by using the smart contracts embedded in the code.
Developers can leverage the platform to build configurable surveys, medications adherence, assessments, and location-based services. Reportedly, The American Heart Association is using the platform and will be rolling out a data-sharing module in its My Cardiac Coach app on iOS and Android.
Many start-ups are exploring the use of blockchain technology in the healthcare domain. We will have to wait and see whether these solutions can deliver improved diagnostics and treatment as they claim.
Do you think that a platform like PatientSphere will help patients? Let us know in the comments below.
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