Google Cloud on March 9 made its new healthcare consent management application programming interface generally available for health tech developers and clinical researchers who work with patients' health data.
The Healthcare Consent Management API helps health data users more easily meet the requirements of existing and emergency privacy and consent frameworks while maintaining transparent incorporation of digital health data into patient care and research.
The API can be used, for example, when providers, researchers or their applications need to determine whether data can be accessed for a particular purpose. They can send a query to the API, which quickly determines if there is valid consent record permitting access.
Google Cloud's API aims to build on advancements made during the COVID-19 pandemic, which pushed healthcare organizations to rapidly adopt virtual care and remote trials. This has left healthcare app developers and researchers with the need for easy and secure ways to manage patient consent, according to Jameson Rogers, PhD, Google Cloud Healthcare & Life Sciences product manager.
"Further, the explosion of rich data generated by devices such as glucose monitors, wearables, and other sources have emphasized the importance of patient consent and privacy, as patients and caregivers look to safely incorporate data from more sources into their care plans."