A Decentralized Architecture for Electronic Health Records to Enhanced Security and Privacy
Rodrigo Ronner Tertulino da Silva, Fernando Richter Vidal, Naghmeh Ivaki · 2025
This research explores a solution that uses blockchain technology to improve the security, privacy, and efficiency of electronic health records (EHR) systems. Our primary focus is to introduce a decentralized architecture that enhances healthcare data management by integrating blockchain technology, particularly Hyperledger Fabric. In addition, we introduced Decentralized Identifiers (DID) integrated with Hyperledger Indy, to provide Self-Sovereign Identity (SSI) and Verifiable Credential (VC) to manage all transactions demanded by EHR systems, such as creating new documents, audits, and authorizations, to name a few. The decentralized architecture ensures the secure sharing of medical data among authorized users while upholding the confidentiality of sensitive information on patient control. Key features such as SSI management, tamper-proof credentials, privacy-preserving authentication, and selective data disclosure mechanisms advance patient identity privacy and regulatory compliance, aligning with standards such as the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) and the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). Thus, this research highlights how blockchain technology and secure data management practices can be adopted in EHRs to enhance the security and privacy of patient information in an increasingly digitized healthcare domain.