FortiRx: Distributed Ledger Based Verifiable and Trustworthy Electronic Prescription Sharing

A paper-based prescription signed by the prescriber to authorize dispensing of medication is typically used in traditional healthcare. Such systems are prone to many issues like medication errors, latency, and lack of integration with other healthcare systems. Hence, Electronic prescription (E-prescription) systems are being used as alternatives to overcome these issues. Even though E-prescription systems provide the advantage of recording and maintaining patient medication history but still face issues such as system crashes, latency due to their centralized architectures, prone to many security threats like identity theft and unauthorized patient record access and modifications. Lack of standardization can also make such E-prescription systems not interoperable, which may lead to information fragmentation or delays in the processing of prescriptions. Hence, there is still a need for making these E-prescription systems more secure, reliable, and cost-effective for wide-range adaptation. Blockchain is one such technology that can add additional layers of security to the existing E-prescription systems by providing tamper-proof records of all transactions which will help in ensuring the authenticity and integrity of prescriptions. Blockchain can also help in better management of patients’ privacy while patients still have full control over their health data. Blockchain usage can also enhance interoperability and reduce prescription abuse. The proposed application FortiRx makes use of the Ethereum blockchain platform and leverages smart contracts for implementing business logic. Cyphertext-Policy Attribute-Based Encryption (CP-ABE) is used in the proposed application to create and manage access-control mechanisms and ensure Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPPA) compliance. The proposed system has been implemented and analyzed for security, reliability, and adaptability in a real-time environment.