Method and apparatus to produce, maintain and report information related to patient treatment using medical devices

• US 20040049244A1
• Filed: 09/05/2002
• Published: 03/11/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 09/05/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Cardiac Pacemakers Incorporated (Boston Scientific Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Cardiac Pacemakers Incorporated (Boston Scientific Corporation)
• Inventors: Lindh, Par, Cao, Wei
• Granted Patent: US 7,069,085 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 607/60
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/08 Arrangements or circuits for monitoring, protecting, controlling or indicating for external stimulators A61N1/3603; for implantable neurostimulators A61N1/36128; for heart stimulators A61N1/37; for defibrillators A61N1/3925
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/37 Monitoring; Protecting
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/37252 Details of algorithms or data aspects of communication system, e.g. handshaking, transmitting specific data or segmenting data
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/37282 characterised by communication with experts in remote locations using a network
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 15/00 ICT specially adapted for medical reports, e.g. generation or transmission thereof
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 40/40 for the management of medical equipment or devices, e.g. scheduling maintenance or upgrades
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 40/67 for remote operation

Abstract

A system for automating the process of generating reports, such as warranty and registration reports, for programmable medical devices. The system uses a variety of data collecting and checking techniques to make the generator and transmission of such reports more efficient.

Claims

1. A system for generating reports related to medical products and the patients treated through the use of said medical products, at least some of said medical products having a memory in which an indicia of the type of medical product and an indicia of the specific identity of the medical product is stored, said system including a device comprising:

(a) a mechanism for interrogating the memory of medical products;

(b) a processor,

(c) a first database stored on said device containing a plurality of report formats and at least some of said formats having a plurality of data fields; and

(d) a second database for storing data related to patients and the medical products used to treat the patients, at least some of said data derived by interrogating the memory of medical products;

said device capable of generating a report related to a patient and a medical product used to treat the patient by selecting a report format from said first database based upon the indicia of the type of the medical product used to treat the patient and using data stored in the second database related to said patient and said medical device to complete at least some of said data fields in the selected report format.

2. The system of claim 1 wherein said indicia of the type of medical product and the indicia of the specific identity of the medical product are both contained within a serial number of the product.

3. The system of claim 1 wherein said indicia of the type of medical product is a model number and said indicia of the specific identity of the medical product is a serial number.

4. The system of claim 1 further including a printer for printing reports generated by said device.

5. The system of claim 1 further including a user interface which allows as user to add data to or edit certain data contained in the second database.

6. The system of claim 4 wherein said user interface prompts the user to supply additional data when information not already in the second database is required to complete a field of the report format selected from the forms library.

7. The system of claim 1 wherein said medical products are implantable medical products.

8. The system of claim 7 wherein said implantable medical products are cardiac rhythm management devices.

9. The system of claim 7 wherein said device is an external programmer for said implantable medical products.

10. The system of claim 9 wherein said external programmer is a node on the network and said external programmer can transfer the reports it generates to at least one other node on the network.

11. The system of claim 1 wherein said device is part of a network of devices and is capable of transferring the reports it generates to other network devices.

12. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein at least one of said medical products is programmable.

13. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein said device is capable of transferring the reports it generates to a facsimile machine.

14. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein said second database contains data related to at least one facility where patients are treated.

15. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein said second database contains data related to at least one physician who treats said patients.

16. For generating registration cards for programmable cardiac rhythm management devices, a programmer capable of:

(a) interrogating the memory of a cardiac rhythm management device to determine its type, its identity, and parameters with which it has been programmed;

(b) storing data derived from interrogating the memory of the cardiac rhythm management device in a database, said database also including patient data and user data;

(c) selecting from a set of report formats the correct format for the registration card for said cardiac rhythm management device based upon its type;

(d) inserting into the format data stored within said database required to complete the registration card;

(e) prompting the user of the programmer to supply data required to complete the registration card but not contained within said database;

(f) transmitting the registration card.

17. The programmer of claim 16 wherein the patient data within said database includes information which can be used to identify and contact the patient.

18. The programmer of claim 16 wherein said user data within said database includes information which can be used to identify and contact the user.

19. The programmer of claim 16 wherein said database includes data related to at least one lead used in conjunction with the cardiac rhythm management device.

20. The programmer of claim 16 wherein said database includes information related to the patient'"'"'s medical condition.

21. The programmer of claim 16 wherein said database includes information related to medical devices explanted from the patient.

22. The programmer of claim 16 wherein said transmitted registration card is re-transmitted to a printer which prints the registration card.

23. The programmer of claim 16 further including a network interface card.

24. The programmer of claim 16 wherein said network interface card is used to associate the programmer to a network of devices so that the programmer can transmit said registration card to other devices on the network.

25. A system for generating reports related to medical products and the patients treated through the use of said medical products, at least some of said medical products having a memory in which an indicia of the type of medical product and an indicia of the specific identity of the medical product is stored, said system including:

a. a first database containing a plurality of report formats and at least some of said formats having a plurality of data fields;

b. a second database for storing data related to patients, medical products used to treat the patients, at least one physician who treats the patients, and at least one facility where the patients are treated; and

c. a device capable of interrogating the memory of a medical device to determine the type of medical device and the specific identity of the medical device, supplying said data to said second database, selecting a report format from the plurality of report formats stored in the first database based upon the type of the medical device, completing fields in the selected report format using data from the second database to create a report, and transmitting said report.

26. The system of claim 25 further including a printer to which said report is transmitted for printing.

27. The system of claim 25 further including a facsimile machine and said report is transmitted to said facsimile machine.

28. The system of claim 25 wherein said device is a first node on a network containing a plurality of nodes.

29. The system of claim 28 wherein said first database is stored on a node of the network other than said first node.

30. The system of claim 28 wherein said second database is stored on a node of the network other than said first node.

31. The system of claim 28 wherein said report is transmitted from said first node to at least one other node on said network.