Blockchain for Health

The use of blockchain allows the creation of encrypted and decentralized digital medical records. This reduces the risk of unauthorized access and makes any later manipulation of the record detectable. Health data is a special category (Art. 9 GDPR) and processing it at scale requires a data protection impact assessment (Art. 35(3)(b) GDPR). That is why clinical data never goes on-chain, only its hash: immutability clashes with the rights to rectification and erasure (Arts. 16 and 17 GDPR).

Blockchain facilitates communication between different actors in the health sector, allowing for the safe and efficient sharing of medical information. This allows health professionals to access patients' medical records, reducing errors and improving the quality of care.

Blockchain technology makes any later alteration of a medical record detectable, which makes fraud with patient data harder. In addition, by automating processes and records, it facilitates administrative management, reducing operating costs and increasing efficiency.

Thanks to the immutable nature of blockchain, every transaction related to medical data is recorded and accessible to authorized professionals. This improves the traceability of treatments and diagnoses, increasing trust between patients and healthcare providers.

The healthcare provider remains the controller and must keep the medical record for at least five years from the discharge of each episode of care (Art. 17.1 of Spanish Law 41/2002, BOE-A-2002-22188). The patient exercises access and a copy of the record (Art. 18), not erasure. What we add is traceability: every access is logged, and the patient can check who has seen their information and when.