By
Godfrey Benjamin
April 12th, 2024
According to Accredify and SGInnovate, the blockchain-powered health app will launch in October. As the press release reads, the app is potentially an essential tool for both the healthcare sector and the travel industry.
With the spreading coronavirus second wave, Singapore decided to apply blockchain technology for timely health data collection and surveillance. For that purpose, Singaporean government-owned investment firm SGInnovate and startup Accredify have jointly developed a blockchain-powered Digital Health Passport. This app allows the storage of personal medical data in a blockchain-secured digital wallet.
The work on the app began in May. Built on the Open Attestation platform, an open-sourced framework for notarizing documents with blockchain, the app digitizes medical documents for distribution. Besides, it provides personal SingPass accounts for users. They will also receive unique badges while obtaining the necessary COVID-19 documents required by the country where they travel to. Authorities can scan the document’s QR code in the app to verify authenticity.
SGInnovate explained:
“Digital Health Passport leverages blockchain technology to generate tamper-proof cryptographic protections for each medical document. Users can automatically verify the digital records via a mobile app and present it to officials via QR code, for a quick and seamless verification process”.
Accredify representative commented:
“The health passport will be valid for Singaporeans and people from other countries as well. We will be making the application interoperable with different standards and bring on board all the accredited labs around the region”.
In July, the developers conducted a pilot test of the app. It showed the ability to manage and verify digitized healthcare documents including COVID-19 discharge memos, swab results, immunity proof, as well as vaccination records more than 1.5 million times.
According to Accredify and SGInnovate, the blockchain-powered health app will launch in October. As the press release reads, the app is potentially an essential tool for both the healthcare sector and the travel industry. It will facilitate checks and verifications on the health status of travelers, such as at boarding and border check-points for greater safety.
About SGInnovate and Accredify
SGInnovate is wholly owned by the Singapore Government. The company helps scientists build Deep Tech startups to solve difficult problems affecting the world. Founded in 2016, SGInnovate works with various industry partners like the Asia Regulatory Professional Association, Kingsland School of Blockchain, Ngee Ann Polytechnic, NUS-ISS, NVIDIA, and Red Dragon AI. Besides, it conducts Deep Tech workshops in various Deep Tech areas like Artificial Intelligence, Blockchain, Cybersecurity, and MedTech.
Accredify is a SaaS company that supports organizations in their document lifecycle management and ensures their documents are easily verifiable. In other words, the company empowers firms to create, issue, and verify digital credentials. Its goal is to create an affordable solution that can revolutionize the world of identity and document management. As Accredify also says, its work revolves around a singular idea: making work secure and simple for everyone.