BlackBerry Introduces a Blockchain-Based Platform to Boost the Health Sector

The Waterloo-based software and service company, on Thursday, announced its plan to restructure the health sector through the BlackBerry Spark platform. According to the award-winning company, this innovation is aimed to improve patient outcomes as the platform allows for ultra-secure sharing of data among healthcare ‘things.’

This ultra-secure global ecosystem for sharing and storing medical data would be made possible through ONEBIO’s blockchain digital ledger, which would be powered by the company’s very own carrier-grade network operation center (NOC).

This will greatly reduce the time needed for diagnosis and improve patient’s healthcare in general. With such an innovation, the medical data of a patient could be inputted by the patient, IoT biometric devices or laboratories and this same data would be ‘anonymized’ so that it can be shared among different researchers.

According to the management, this new innovation would be offered to the Global Commission and Shire, two organizations saddled with the responsibility of diagnosing and ending rare diseases.

In accordance with the new platform, BlackBerry has decided to launch a new operating system (OS) for secure medical devices. The new QNX operating system for Medical 2.0, which was designed in compliant with IEC 62304 safety certification standards, is a top-notch OS for the development of patient monitoring system, blood analysis systems, robotic surgical instruments, infusion pumps, and a host of other safety-critical products.

Without much ado, the renowned Mackenzie Innovation Institute (MI2), which is known for acting as a bridge between health care and industry for the evaluation of innovative technologies, has announced its intention to partner with BlackBerry on its smart healthcare technology vision. According to the Chief Financial Officer of MI2, Richard Tam, the aim of collaborating with the award-winning company is to uncover new ways through which they can connect, protect, and manage smart technologies in hospitals, and thus, improving patient care.

I guess the Mackenzie Innovation Institute is not the only company who has made a move to leverage the BlackBerry innovative idea. News reaching us says that the Melanoma Institute Australia (MIA) has also announced their interest in partnering with BlackBerry to enable researchers to safely share critical research data and patient records anonymously.

The institute which has gained a reputation for pioneering the prevention and cure of the life-threatening disease, melanoma, through research, education programs, and treatment, was pleased to partner with the new innovation because of the balance it strikes between security and ease-of-use. The MIA’s Chief Information Officer, Ernie White, stated that this innovation would help strengthen their research network by allowing the researchers to freely collaborate in a highly-regulated environment while maintaining our data integrity.

This is yet another confirmation that blockchain technology is a helpful means of transforming virtually every sector of the economy. So, instead of doubting its authenticity or lifespan, I believe the government should embrace it with open arms and make policies that would guide in employing its use in different facets of the economy.