The Opportunities of Blockchain in Health 4.0

The next definitive step into the future is expected to involve a shift towards a fully automated environment that utilizes exponential technology such as Artificial Intelligence (AI), Internet of Things (IoT), Sensor Networks and Blockchain paradigms. We are immersed in the Fourth Industrial Revolution, that is fundamentally changing the way we live, work and interact with one another, and with technology. Industry 4.0 is an emerging era of connectivity and interaction among parts, machines and humans that have the potential to create enormous production and efficiency dividends, in addition to improvements in the quality of life and sustainable environmental outcomes. The Healthcare Industry is in the process of adopting technologies that allow digitization of health records and automation of various plausible clinical procedures. The field has undergone an evolution of its own, and is now standing at Healthcare Version 3.0, the extension of Web 3.0, that involves greater transparency of healthcare data to individuals, personalized to optimize their experience with the interface. The amalgamation of the two revolutions to realise the new era of Health 4.0, is where the emerging Blockchain Technology could play a major role. The need for interoperability across clinical departments within the same hospital, the necessity of updated set of records for reference across multiple healthcare facilities, and the exigency of trusted and transparent documentation of individual health data, urge the use of Blockchain concepts in our attempt to transform healthcare services. This chapter explores the transition of the Healthcare Industry, the drawbacks of previous versions, and the opportunities of Blockchain concepts that would aid the medical field in keeping up with Industry 4.0.