Connected Blockchain Federations for Sharing Electronic Health Records
With the growing utility of blockchain technology, the desire for reciprocal interactions among different blockchains is growing. However, most operational blockchain networks currently operate in a standalone setting. This fragmentation in the form of isolated blockchains creates interoperability d...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2022-09-01
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| Series: | Cryptography |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2410-387X/6/3/47 |
| _version_ | 1797489720780914688 |
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| author | Faiza Hashim Khaled Shuaib Farag Sallabi |
| author_facet | Faiza Hashim Khaled Shuaib Farag Sallabi |
| author_sort | Faiza Hashim |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | With the growing utility of blockchain technology, the desire for reciprocal interactions among different blockchains is growing. However, most operational blockchain networks currently operate in a standalone setting. This fragmentation in the form of isolated blockchains creates interoperability difficulties, inhibiting the adoption of blockchains in various ecosystems. Interoperability is a key factor in the healthcare domain for sharing EHRs of patients registered in independent blockchain networks. Each blockchain network could have its own rules and regulations, obstructing the exchange of EHRs for improving diagnosis and treatments. Examples include patients being treated by healthcare providers in different countries or regions, or within one country but with a different set of rules per state or emirate. By contrast, a federation of blockchain networks can provide better communication and service to stakeholders in healthcare. Thus, solutions for facilitating inter-blockchain communication in such a blockchain federation are needed. However, this possibility has not been fully explored, and further investigations are still being conducted. Hence, the present study proposes a transaction-based smart contract triggering system for inter-blockchain communication, enabling EHR sharing among independent blockchains. We use local and global smart contracts that will be executed once a transaction is created in the blockchain. Local smart contracts are used for EHR sharing within the blockchain, whereas global smart contracts are used for EHR sharing among independent blockchains. The experimental setup is conducted using the Hyperledger Fabric blockchain platform. Inter-blockchain communication between two independent fabric networks is conducted through a global smart contract using Hyperledger Cactus for EHR sharing in a health federation setup. To the best of our knowledge, our study is the first to implement an inter-blockchain communication model in the healthcare domain. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-10T00:20:41Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-3d56556b4759439eab9634834758fea7 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2410-387X |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-10T00:20:41Z |
| publishDate | 2022-09-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Cryptography |
| spelling | doaj.art-3d56556b4759439eab9634834758fea72023-11-23T15:42:41ZengMDPI AGCryptography2410-387X2022-09-01634710.3390/cryptography6030047Connected Blockchain Federations for Sharing Electronic Health RecordsFaiza Hashim0Khaled Shuaib1Farag Sallabi2Department of Information Systems and Security, College of Information Technology, United Arab Emirates University, Al Ain P.O. Box 15551, United Arab EmiratesDepartment of Information Systems and Security, College of Information Technology, United Arab Emirates University, Al Ain P.O. Box 15551, United Arab EmiratesDepartment of Computer and Network Engineering, College of Information Technology, United Arab Emirates University, Al Ain P.O. Box 15551, United Arab EmiratesWith the growing utility of blockchain technology, the desire for reciprocal interactions among different blockchains is growing. However, most operational blockchain networks currently operate in a standalone setting. This fragmentation in the form of isolated blockchains creates interoperability difficulties, inhibiting the adoption of blockchains in various ecosystems. Interoperability is a key factor in the healthcare domain for sharing EHRs of patients registered in independent blockchain networks. Each blockchain network could have its own rules and regulations, obstructing the exchange of EHRs for improving diagnosis and treatments. Examples include patients being treated by healthcare providers in different countries or regions, or within one country but with a different set of rules per state or emirate. By contrast, a federation of blockchain networks can provide better communication and service to stakeholders in healthcare. Thus, solutions for facilitating inter-blockchain communication in such a blockchain federation are needed. However, this possibility has not been fully explored, and further investigations are still being conducted. Hence, the present study proposes a transaction-based smart contract triggering system for inter-blockchain communication, enabling EHR sharing among independent blockchains. We use local and global smart contracts that will be executed once a transaction is created in the blockchain. Local smart contracts are used for EHR sharing within the blockchain, whereas global smart contracts are used for EHR sharing among independent blockchains. The experimental setup is conducted using the Hyperledger Fabric blockchain platform. Inter-blockchain communication between two independent fabric networks is conducted through a global smart contract using Hyperledger Cactus for EHR sharing in a health federation setup. To the best of our knowledge, our study is the first to implement an inter-blockchain communication model in the healthcare domain.https://www.mdpi.com/2410-387X/6/3/47blockchain integrationblockchain communicationsmart contractselectronic health records (EHRs)blockchain federation |
| spellingShingle | Faiza Hashim Khaled Shuaib Farag Sallabi Connected Blockchain Federations for Sharing Electronic Health Records Cryptography blockchain integration blockchain communication smart contracts electronic health records (EHRs) blockchain federation |
| title | Connected Blockchain Federations for Sharing Electronic Health Records |
| title_full | Connected Blockchain Federations for Sharing Electronic Health Records |
| title_fullStr | Connected Blockchain Federations for Sharing Electronic Health Records |
| title_full_unstemmed | Connected Blockchain Federations for Sharing Electronic Health Records |
| title_short | Connected Blockchain Federations for Sharing Electronic Health Records |
| title_sort | connected blockchain federations for sharing electronic health records |
| topic | blockchain integration blockchain communication smart contracts electronic health records (EHRs) blockchain federation |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2410-387X/6/3/47 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT faizahashim connectedblockchainfederationsforsharingelectronichealthrecords AT khaledshuaib connectedblockchainfederationsforsharingelectronichealthrecords AT faragsallabi connectedblockchainfederationsforsharingelectronichealthrecords |