The healthcare industry continues to be a hotbed of innovation. Activity is driven by telemedicine, real-time diagnostics, smart hospitals and access to digital therapies, and the growing importance of technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI), the internet of things (IoT), augmented reality (AR), robotics and data management practices. In the last three years alone, there have been over 106,000 patents filed and granted in the healthcare industry, according to GlobalData’s report on Cloud in Healthcare: Patient data blockchain. Buy the report here.

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Data Insights Cloud Computing in Healthcare - Thematic Intelligence

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According to GlobalData’s Technology Foresights, which uses over 443,000 patents to analyse innovation intensity for the healthcare industry, there are 200+ innovation areas that will shape the future of the industry.

Patient data blockchain is a key innovation area in cloud

Blockchain in healthcare enables secure patient data exchange among doctors, hospitals, labs, and pharmacies. The traditional techniques used by many organisations to store comparable patient data have been replaced with blockchain technology, which enables improved diagnosis and individualised treatment regimens based on the patient’s medical history.

GlobalData’s analysis also uncovers the companies at the forefront of each innovation area and assesses the potential reach and impact of their patenting activity across different applications and geographies. According to GlobalData, there are 30+ companies, spanning technology vendors, established healthcare companies, and up-and-coming start-ups engaged in the development and application of patient data blockchain.

Key players in patient data blockchain – a disruptive innovation in the healthcare industry

‘Application diversity’ measures the number of different applications identified for each relevant patent. It broadly splits companies into either ‘niche’ or ‘diversified’ innovators.

‘Geographic reach’ refers to the number of different countries each relevant patent is registered in. It reflects the breadth of geographic application intended, ranging from ‘global’ to ‘local’.

Patent volumes related to patient data blockchain

Bluefins Payment Systems is one of the leading patent filers in the field of patient data blockchain. Some other key patent filers in the field include Koninklijke Philips and International Business Machines.

In terms of application diversity, MDClone leads the pack, followed by ResMed and DexCom. By means of geographic reach, Hewlett Packard Enterprise holds the top position, followed by CMR Surgical and Laboratory of America in second and third spots, respectively.

Blockchain-based information exchange in the healthcare industry has shown to be successful in delivering better drug traceability, better treatment planning, better supply chain management, and improved patient outcomes. Blockchain-based data storage is decentralised and safe, however, the high cost of development and specialised knowledge needed for data processing may hinder the usage of technology.

To further understand how Cloud is disrupting the healthcare industry, access GlobalData’s latest thematic research report on Cloud Computing in Healthcare.

GlobalData, the leading provider of industry intelligence, provided the underlying data, research, and analysis used to produce this article.

GlobalData’s Patent Analytics tracks patent filings and grants from official offices around the world. Textual analysis and official patent classifications are used to group patents into key thematic areas and link them to specific companies across the world’s largest industries.