SECURE FRAMEWORK FOR A CLOUD-BASED ELECTRONIC HEALTH RECORDS SYSTEM SECURE FRAMEWORK FOR A CLOUD-BASED ELECTRONIC HEALTH RECORDS SYSTEM

Abstract

The growing demand for efficient, secure, and scalable healthcare services has driven a global shift toward cloud-based solutions. This paper presents a comprehensive cloud-based Electronic Health Records (EHR) framework designed to meet the needs of both developed and developing healthcare systems, with a focus on implementations in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and Nigeria. The proposed framework addresses the limitations of traditional healthcare record systems by offering a modern, digital alternative that enhances accessibility, efficiency, and data integrity. At the core of the framework is a robust security model that combines multi-authority Ciphertext-Policy Attribute Based Encryption (CP-ABE) with hierarchical access control, enabling fine-grained data protection and privacy enforcement. The architecture ensures seamless integration and cross-device accessibility, while multifactor authentication—supported by trusted authorities—strengthens user verification and safeguards sensitive health information. The framework is designed to align with national digital infrastructure initiatives, such as Saudi Arabia’s “Yasser” e-government cloud platform, to facilitate government-to-citizen (G2C) healthcare services. It also addresses the challenges of resource constrained environments by offering a cost-effective and scalable solution for modernizing healthcare delivery. Comparative security analysis demonstrates the framework’s resilience and effectiveness, making it a promising model for global adoption in the digital transformation of healthcare systems.