Difference between revisions of "Journal:Blockchain-based healthcare workflow for IoT-connected laboratories in federated hospital clouds"

From LIMSWiki
Jump to navigationJump to search
(Created stub. Saving and adding more.)
 
(Saving and adding more.)
Line 32: Line 32:


==Introduction==
==Introduction==
Recent advancements in information and communication technology have paved the way toward new innovative [[telemedicine]] and other remote healthcare services, which are able to support the growing demand of even more accessible medical treatments.<ref name="HassenteufelTheRole20">{{cite journal |title=The role of professional groups in policy change: Physician's organizations and the issue of local medical provision shortages in France and Germany |journal=European Policy Analysis |author=Hassenteufel, P.; Schweyer, F.-X.; Gerlinger, T. et al. |volume=6 |issue=1 |pages=38–57 |year=2020 |doi=10.1002/epa2.1073}}</ref><ref name="Dubas-JakóbczykImpact19">{{cite journal |title=Impact of the doctor deficit on hospital management in Poland: A mixed-method study |journal=International Journal of Health Planning and Management |author=Dubas-Jakóbczyk, K.; Domagała, A.; Mikos, M. |volume=34 |issue=1 |pages=187-195 |year=2019 |doi=10.1002/hpm.2612 |pmid=30132977}}</ref> Particularly, during a [[pandemic]]-related situation such as that caused by the [[SARS-CoV-2]] virus, the need for these types of remote services becomes dramatically fundamental to reducing the movement of patients, and by extension reducing the risk of infection in healthcare settings. However, the recent innovation propogated by the [[cloud computing]] and [[internet of things]] (IoT) paradigms has been only partially taken into consideration by [[hospital]]s and, more generally, by medical centers so far. A crucial aspect that has slowed down wider adoption of these and other information and communication technology paradigms in hospitals is concern about the [[Data integrity|integrity]], [[Information security|security]], and [[Information privacy|privacy]] of exchanged data. Particularly within the healthcare domain, it is critical that shared clinical data be transmitted securely to prevent intentional or accidental illegal data manipulation. Furthermore, patients’ privacy must be guaranteed.





Revision as of 23:12, 9 May 2021

Full article title Blockchain-based healthcare workflow for IoT-connected laboratories in federated hospital clouds
Journal Sensors
Author(s) Celesti, Antonio; Ruggeri, Armando; Fazio, Maria; Galletta, Antonino; Villari, Massimo; Romano, Agata
Author affiliation(s) University of Messina, INdAM-GNCS, IRCCS Centro Neurolesi Bonino Pulejo, ASP Messina
Primary contact Email: acelesti at unime dot it
Year published 2020
Volume and issue 20(9)
Article # 2590
DOI 10.3390/s20092590
ISSN 1424-8220
Distribution license Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International
Website https://www.mdpi.com/1424-8220/20/9/2590/htm
Download https://www.mdpi.com/1424-8220/20/9/2590/pdf (PDF)

Abstract

In a pandemic-related situation such as that caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus, the need for telemedicine and other distanced services becomes dramatically fundamental to reducing the movement of patients, and by extension reducing the risk of infection in healthcare settings. One potential avenue for achieving this is through leveraging cloud computing and internet of things (IoT) technologies. This paper proposes an IoT-connected laboratory service where clinical exams are performed on patients directly in a hospital by technicians through the use of IoT medical diagnostic devices, with results automatically being sent via the hospital's cloud to doctors of federated hospitals for validation and/or consultation. In particular, we discuss a distributed scenario where nurses, technicians, and medical doctors belonging to different hospitals cooperate through their federated hospital clouds to form a virtual health team able to carry out a healthcare workflow in secure fashion by leveraging the intrinsic security features of blockchain technology. In particular, both public and hybrid blockchain scenarios are discussed and assessed using the Ethereum platform.

Keywords: blockchain, smart contract, workflow, healthcare, hospital, cloud computing, IoT, federation

Introduction

Recent advancements in information and communication technology have paved the way toward new innovative telemedicine and other remote healthcare services, which are able to support the growing demand of even more accessible medical treatments.[1][2] Particularly, during a pandemic-related situation such as that caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus, the need for these types of remote services becomes dramatically fundamental to reducing the movement of patients, and by extension reducing the risk of infection in healthcare settings. However, the recent innovation propogated by the cloud computing and internet of things (IoT) paradigms has been only partially taken into consideration by hospitals and, more generally, by medical centers so far. A crucial aspect that has slowed down wider adoption of these and other information and communication technology paradigms in hospitals is concern about the integrity, security, and privacy of exchanged data. Particularly within the healthcare domain, it is critical that shared clinical data be transmitted securely to prevent intentional or accidental illegal data manipulation. Furthermore, patients’ privacy must be guaranteed.




References

  1. Hassenteufel, P.; Schweyer, F.-X.; Gerlinger, T. et al. (2020). "The role of professional groups in policy change: Physician's organizations and the issue of local medical provision shortages in France and Germany". European Policy Analysis 6 (1): 38–57. doi:10.1002/epa2.1073. 
  2. Dubas-Jakóbczyk, K.; Domagała, A.; Mikos, M. (2019). "Impact of the doctor deficit on hospital management in Poland: A mixed-method study". International Journal of Health Planning and Management 34 (1): 187-195. doi:10.1002/hpm.2612. PMID 30132977. 

Notes

This presentation is faithful to the original, with only a few minor changes to presentation. Some grammar and punctuation was cleaned up to improve readability. The original title—Blockchain-Based Healthcare Workflow for Tele-Medical Laboratory in Federated Hospital IoT Clouds—was changed slightly as "tele-medical laboratory" is a confusing phrase that elicits thoughts of "telemedicine," which is not an accurate portrayal of the article. The new title intends to capture the true spirit of the concept, and this change was also propogated throughout this version of the article. In some cases important information was missing from the references, and that information was added.