{"title":"Blockchain Technology Applications in Patient Tracking Systems Regarding Privacy-Preserving Concerns and COVID-19 Pandemic","authors":"Farbod Behnaminia, Saeed Samet","volume":194,"journal":"International Journal of Information and Communication Engineering","pagesStart":144,"pagesEnd":157,"ISSN":"1307-6892","URL":"https:\/\/publications.waset.org\/pdf\/10012975","abstract":"<p>The COVID-19 pandemic has paralyzed many lives until a vaccine has been available, which caused the so-called \"new normal\". COVID-19 is an infectious disease. It can cause significant illness or death in anyone. Governments and health officials tried to impose rules and regulations to avoid and slow down transmission. Therefore, software engineers worldwide developed applications to trace and track patients\u2019 movements and notify others, mainly using Bluetooth. In this way, everyone could be informed whether they came in close contact with someone who has COVID-19 and take proper safety precautions. Because most of the applications use technologies that can potentially reveal the user\u2019s identity and location, researchers have debated privacy preservation and how to improve user privacy during such pandemics. We conducted a comprehensive evaluation of the literature by looking for papers in the relevant field and dividing them into pre- and post-pandemic systems. Additionally, we discussed the many uses of blockchain technology in pandemic control. We found that two major obstacles facing blockchain implementation across many healthcare systems are scalability and privacy. The Polkadot platform is presented, along with a review of its efficacy in tackling current concerns. A more scalable healthcare system is achievable in near future using Polkadot as well as a much more privacy-preserving environment.<\/p>","references":"[1] \u201cCoronavirus disease (COVID-19) EURO.\u201d (Online). Available:\r\nhttps:\/\/www.who.int\/europe\/health-topics\/coronavirus\r\n[2] WHO. (2021) \u201cCoronavirus Disease (COVID-19)\r\n\u2013 World Health Organization\". (Online). Available:\r\nhttps:\/\/www.who.int\/emergencies\/diseases\/novel-coronavirus-2019\r\n[3] \u2014\u2014. (2021) WHO Coronavirus (COVID-19) Dashboard. (Online). \r\nAvailable: https:\/\/covid19.who.int\r\n[4] M. Swan, Blockchain: Blueprint for a new economy. \" O\u2019Reilly Media,\r\nInc.\", 2015.\r\n[5] S. Nakamoto, \u201cBitcoin: A peer-to-peer electronic cash system,\u201d\r\nDecentralized Business Review, p. 21260, 2008.\r\n[6] H. Xu, L. Zhang, O. Onireti, Y. Fang, W. J. Buchanan, and M. A. 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