Blockchain and Healthcare

Name: Blockchain and Healthcare
Rating: 4.4 (1270 reviews)

Giving non-technical minds an in-depth understanding of blockchain's implications in healthcare

Created byKatherine Kuzmeskas

Last updated 12/2018

English

English [Auto],

What you'll learn

Students will be able to describe the underlying technology of blockchain, evaluate potential use cases for blockchain technology, and describe the technology's impact on the healthcare sector.
Answer questions such as: Is something a good use case for blockchain? How could blockchain impact my work? What would we need to consider in order to implement a blockchain solution?

Course content

7 sections • 14 lectures • 1h 24m total length

Course Overview3:40
Explore blockchain in healthcare through a course overview, detailing what blockchain is, how it works with cryptography, consensus mechanisms, and smart contracts, and why trust matters in healthcare.
Course Overview Quiz
Blockchain Overview6:20
Explore how blockchain builds trust through distributed ledgers and immutable audit trails, using the Yap stones and bitcoin as analogies for secure health care data access.
Blockchain Overview Quiz
Bitcoin Whitepaper, Section 1

Hashing6:25
Cryptographic hashing converts data into fixed-size, one-way hashes (SHA-256, Keccak-256) to secure blockchain, enabling an immutable audit trail through linked blocks and advising against storing large patient data on chain.
Hashing Quiz
Public Key Cryptography6:15
Explore public key cryptography and digital signatures in blockchain, detailing how public and private keys enable encryption, authentication, and secure Ethereum accounts.
Public Key Cryptography Quiz
Bitcoin Whitepaper, Sections 2 & 3

Consensus & Challenges5:33
Explore how consensus mechanisms maintain universal agreement across blockchain nodes, prevent double spending and Sybil attacks, and achieve Byzantine fault tolerance in healthcare data.
Consensus & Challenges Quiz
Consensus Protocols4:41
Explore the three main blockchain consensus protocols—proof of work, proof of stake, and proof of authority—and their trade-offs in energy use, security, and centralization.
Consensus Protocol Quiz

Smart Contract Concepts3:28
Explore how Ethereum enables secure peer-to-peer code processing and smart contracts with Solidity, using dapps for healthcare and testing in a virtual machine sandbox.
Smart Contract Concepts Quiz
Smart Contract Uses Cases & Capstone5:44
Explore how smart contracts on blockchain automate conditional health care payments, using digital signatures and consensus to ensure timely, temperature-controlled medication delivery and automatic refunds.
Smart Contract Uses Cases & Capstone Quiz

Challenges in Healthcare Innovation and how to Overcome Them20:23
Navigate healthcare's complexity and learn how blockchain can drive innovation by starting with a business model, distinguishing data ownership from access, and enabling HIPAA and GDPR-compliant security.
Challenges in Healthcare Innovation and how to Overcome Them Quiz
Moving towards reality-based healthcare technology4:04
Discover how blockchain acts as a ledger and enables smart contracts to streamline prescriptions, billing, and readmissions, while aligning incentives to support the healthcare commons.
Moving towards reality-based healthcare technology Quiz

Private versus Public Blockchains and Healthcare Use4:49
Explore the differences between public and private blockchains and an immutable distributed ledger. Identify when to use public versus private blockchains in health care and related use cases.
Private versus Public Blockchains and Healthcare Use Quiz
Challenges with today's Blockchains5:45
Explore the current blockchain landscape in health care, adoption challenges, and the trade-offs between public and private blockchains, including scalability, security risks, and smart contract implications.
Challenges with today's Blockchains Quiz

Consumer Focused Scalability3:32
Explore consumer-focused scalability for blockchain in health care by comparing proof of work with energy-efficient alternatives like proof of stake and burn, and examining sidechains, off-chain solutions, and sharding.
Consumer Focused Scalability Quiz
Secure Decentralized Data Storage3:23
Explore secure decentralized data storage for blockchain. Understand why on-chain storage is costly and insecure, and how key pair systems, distributed hash tables, and data sharding enable affordable, scalable storage.
Secure Decentralized Data Storage Quiz

Requirements

None. This course will walk participants through the knowledge needed for a functional understanding of blockchain and how it relates to the healthcare industry.

Description

Blockchain technology has the potential to transform the healthcare industry. People in the healthcare sector, however, need comprehensive tools to guide them through a functional and technical understanding of blockchain. This course will give an overview of what blockchain is, how it works, and how it is impacting the healthcare industry, so professionals can be empowered as the field continues to evolve.

Music in promotional video by Bensound

Who this course is for:

People without a technical background who want a basic technical understanding of blockchain technology in the healthcare industry.
Example: Providers, payers, administrators, academics, and innovators.

Blockchain and Healthcare

What you'll learn

Explore related topics

Course content

Blockchain & Healthcare Introduction2 lectures • 10min

Cryptography2 lectures • 13min

Consensus Mechanisms2 lectures • 10min

Smart Contracts2 lectures • 9min

Blockchain Implications in Healthcare2 lectures • 24min

Technical Deep Dive: Current Blockchains2 lectures • 11min

Technical Deep Dive: Future of Decentralized Technology in Healthcare2 lectures • 7min

Requirements

Description

Who this course is for: