Gem Health partners with Philips Blockchain Lab to investigate using blockchain technology in healthcare
US blockchain startup Gem has partnered with Philips to launch Gem Health, an initiative for building a "patient-centric approach to healthcare" utilising blockchain technology.
Gem Health has teamed up with Philips Blockchain Lab, and said it is aiming to provide the data infrastructure to support a "globally integrated healthcare continuum", connecting companies that work in all levels of healthcare.
Clinical data, claims processing, pharmaceutical supply chains, Internet of Health, universal health identities and genomic data management are areas that Gem Health is conducting research into.
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Blockchain is widely known as the technology that underpins cryptocurrencies such as bitcoin and works as a decentralised, secure public ledger of transactions shared by a network of users. As such, it can also be used to store data in other contexts, such as healthcare.
"Gem Health is about building an inclusive blockchain ecosystem for healthcare," the company said. "We're taking an industry-driven approach to application and infrastructure development."
"Gem Health is a blockchain network for the global community of companies and individuals that take part in the continuum of care. Blockchain technology addresses the trade-off between personalized care and operational costs by connecting the ecosystem to universal infrastructure. Shared infrastructure allows us to create global standards without compromising privacy and security," Gem Health said on its website.