Health, ICO

Meet the Boss – Exclusive Interview with MediBloc CEO Dr. Allen Wookyun Kho

medibloc dr Allen Wookyun kho Interview Blockchain

MediBloc is a decentralized healthcare data management platform built on the blockchain.

The platform’s main goal is to empower patients with options they deserve (and should have had) in the healthcare industry.
With MediBloc, patients can hold and have full control over their medical records while at the same time, controlling access to healthcare providers as well as updating information with the appropriate amount of patient consent. By enabling these features, MediBloc helps to reduce inherent problems in the healthcare industry like process redundancies, inefficient administrative tasks, delays in giving or receiving treatment, data forgery, and insurance frauds—all of this will be eliminated and improved in a secure and transparent medical platform.

We recently sat down with Dr. Allen Wookyun Kho, the CEO of MediBloc to have a chat with him about the project as well as finding out his thoughts and insights.

Hi, Allen. Thanks for joining us today. Can you tell us more about yourself and MediBloc?

medibloc logoI am the co-founder of MediBloc. I used to work at Samsung Electronics as the lead software engineer for Galaxy S with specialization in the field of peer-to-peer network. I then switched my career to become a dental surgeon and practiced medicine for a few years. Having expertise in blockchain, programming, and medicine, I was able to see the shortcomings in healthcare information system which I decided to address through the MediBloc project.

Tell us about how you came up with the idea of MediBloc. Did you face a problem within the medical services industry or do you think there is a gap in the market for MediBloc to fill?

During my time as a dentist, I was able to see the problem in Personal Healthcare Record (PHR) market. MediBloc co-founder Eunsol was able to see the same inefficiency in PHR market as he is a radiologist with expert knowledge in big data and software engineering. By linking our knowledge in blockchain to the healthcare industry, we clearly saw the solution that will benefit everyone and bring constructive changes to the world.

Editors Pick: MediBloc ICO

What do you think is the biggest problem MediBloc will solve and why is the problem important to solve?

The biggest problem now is that all the health data is scattered around medical institutions and patients have difficulties accessing their own record. In addition, it is very difficult to guarantee security and trust for any data that has been transferred from one place to another. This is the main cause of all the data forgery and insurance frauds. MediBloc solves these two big problems through using the blockchain technology that guarantees security and trust between trustless participants in the network.

Tell us more about why you decided to use QTUM instead of the more popular ETH blockchain as the basis of the MediBloc platform. What are the advantages of QTUM over other blockchains?

QTUM has positive characteristics of both Bitcoin and Ethereum. It is also currently the most scalable public blockchain due to the use of POS (Proof of Stake) consensus algorithm. Qtum is also a China-based platform and will help MediBloc advance into the Chinese market.

Can you give us your opinion as to why a solution to this problem has only been covered by you and your team now? Why were there no solutions built in the past that could solve this problem? Is it a matter of technology or are there other forces that are preventing change from happening?

Blockchain technology has not really been studied enough in the past. Also, there are many stakeholders in the healthcare industry who want to resist any change. Now we have the technology that is the hottest keyword for everyone everywhere. Today, people also realize that their data are often times exploited without knowing. The public is keen on getting their rights back. MediBloc team believes this is the perfect timing to begin unprecedented disruption in the healthcare industry.

Other than the redundancy of data, what other problems or challenges will MediBloc solve for the benefit of the platform’s users?

Patients, not the hospitals, will be compensated by researchers who buy the access to the permitted patient data.

medibloc healthcare

How will MediBloc change the landscape of the healthcare research industry?

Through the MediBloc platform, more healthcare services will come to online space. Patients and healthcare providers will not feel the same geographical barriers as before. Insurance companies will save tons of money by automating insurance claims through a smart contract on blockchain network. Researchers will have an easier time preparing for developing a new medicine.

By linking our knowledge in blockchain to the healthcare industry, we clearly saw the solution that will benefit everyone and bring constructive changes to the world

Is MediBloc already working with notable businesses or firms? Are there any future partnerships in the process? If yes, can you explain briefly about it?

We have recently formed a breakthrough partnership with Oracle Medical Group, Korea’s biggest dermatology and cosmetic surgery clinics with more than 70 branches globally. They have agreed to fully connect the MediBloc platform to their data network and provide patients easy and secure access to their healthcare records. They will also accept our token MED as their global payment solution. We also have partnered with companies that will help input healthcare data such as Huray Positive, Welt, M20 Mobile while we also have data purchasers such as Syntekabio. We need to create an ecosystem where patients, healthcare providers, and researchers have balanced participation. We are consciously onboarding partners to establish this healthy ecosystem.

What do you think is the biggest challenge or obstacle MediBloc will face? How do you plan to tackle that challenge?

We think the biggest challenge is convincing the existing stakeholders to accept the new change in Personal Healthcare Record (PHR) market. We are trying to solve this issue through our unique token mechanism and reward system. Also, by appealing to the public, we believe there will be a bottom-up pressure on healthcare providers to accept MediBloc.

MediBloc Team Interview

Moving on to more personal stuff, what does a typical day in your life look like?

Right now, I am on all SNS channel you can think of 24/7. I listen to the community who supports us and respond to people who doubt our project. I also run around all over the places to convince healthcare-related companies and group of people that MediBloc will benefit everyone taking part in it. Often times, I give talks at conferences and meetings to introduce what blockchain is and explain what cryptocurrencies are.

Can you express one personal opinion of yours about the blockchain? It doesn’t matter if it’s negative or positive, we just want to hear your thoughts on it.

It’s a genius invention that can disrupt everything. If this technology is used by the right people with good intention, our lives will improve to the next level.

That concludes our Interview with Dr. Allen Wookyun Kho

More Interviews to come

We’ll be scheduling even more exclusive interviews like this in the coming weeks to delve into the minds of what makes a blockchain startup tick as well asking the questions you want to know the most.

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