Blockchain and IoMT-Adopting SDN for patient-centric management and remote patient monitoring powered by 5G Technology

Abstract

There has been a drastic rise in using online resources to access healthcare during the COVID-19 pandemic, leading towards advancement and improvement of "Internet of Medical Things (IoMT)".This technology uses different medical testing programs and equipment to show patients' health outcomes over the web, hence, helping in providing remote healthcare solutions.Nevertheless, maintaining security and privacy in online communication has constantly been a challenge.Blockchain has immense potential to reduce security challenges in different sectors like healthcare sector.Recent advances in research have provided smart agents for patient monitoring by adopting blockchain technology.However, the configuration of traditional network and blockchain adds a bit of complexity.To deal with this disparity, this study discusses the combination of Blockchain and "software defined network (SDN)" in the proposed framework.This framework is designed well for promoting remote patient monitoring in terms of 5G technology.To fulfill these objectives, an online search was conducted in Google Scholar, PubMed, and IEEE Library for searching publications in English language with relevant terms.After screening abstract, title, and content based on IoMT in healthcare and avoiding duplicate studies.Relevant studies have also been picked from references of articles selected.In SDN control plane, the architecture includes "patient-centric agent (PCA)" for handling user data.The PCA handles patient data very well by providing vital instructions.