Healthcare data management issues and the eCert solution

While our paper-based records and documents are gradually digitized, security concerns about how such electronic data is stored and transmitted have increased. This has a serious impact on our healthcare information system, as it contains sensitive patient data. The prevention of unauthorized modification and loss of records is highly important in the healthcare sector. What's more, information owners have increasing demands regarding their rights of ownership. Therefore, a secured user-centric healthcare information management system is not only required but also important. This paper presents a protocol for the management of healthcare information in the form of a securely distributed eHealthcare document, the eHealth-eCert. By analysis of the eHealthcare problem domain, a system has been derived with both eCert supported functions and eHealthcare unique features.