METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR ACCESS TO HEALTH DATA WITH PORTABLE MEDIA

• US 20080065419A1
• Filed: 09/12/2006
• Published: 03/13/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 09/12/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Esseiva, Effron F.D., Kol, Tomer, Stevens, Richard J.
• Granted Patent: US 7,621,445 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/3
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 10/60 for patient-specific data, e.g. for electronic patient records
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 10/65 stored on portable record carriers, e.g. on smartcards, RFID tags or CD

Abstract

A method and apparatus for managing electronic medical records is disclosed. One method for managing medical records includes defining a tiered hierarchy of medical record storage categories. A first tier may store electronic medical records for the individual and a second tier may store links to medical records not stored on the portable electronic storage device. Once a collection of electronic records related to an individual is defined, at least some of the records may be stored on a portable electronic storage device (such as a smartcard), according to the tiered hierarchy specified by the record categories.

Claims

1. A method of managing medical records, comprising:

identifying a collection of electronic records related to an individual; and

storing at least some of the collection of electronic medical records on a portable electronic storage device according to a tiered hierarchy of medical record storage categories, wherein the tiered hierarchy includes at least patient data for the individual, a first tier for storing electronic medical records for the individual, and a second tier for storing one or more links to medical records not stored on the portable electronic storage device.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving the portable electronic storage device; and

reading the patient data for the individual and the medical records stored on the portable electronic storage device using a storage device reader.

3. The method of claim 2, further comprising:

selecting, by a user of the storage device reader, a link to a medical record included in the second tier; and

retrieving the corresponding medical record from the location specified in the link.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the tiered hierarchy of medical record storage categories further comprises:

a third tier for storing one or more links to a repository of medical records.

5. The method of claim 4, further comprising:

selecting, by a user of a storage device reader, a link to a repository of medical records included in the third tier; and

querying the repository of medical records at the location specified by the link.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the patient data includes information related to at least one of allergies, prescriptions, physician contact information, a home address, medical conditions, insurance information, and emergency contact information for the individual.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the portable electronic storage device contains policies that govern which medical records in the first tier are stored on the portable electronic storage device and which medical records in the second tier are linked directly from the portable electronic storage device.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the portable electronic storage device is further configured to store metadata associated with the tiered hierarchy of medical records to indicate the content of at least one electronic medical record not directly stored on the portable electronic storage device.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the portable electronic storage device is a smartcard.

10. A computer-readable medium containing a program which, when executed, performs an operation for managing electronic medical records, comprising:

identifying a collection of electronic records related to an individual; and

storing at least some of the collection of electronic medical records on a portable electronic storage device according to a tiered hierarchy of medical record storage categories, wherein the tiered hierarchy includes at least patient data for the individual, a first tier for storing electronic medical records for the individual, and a second tier for storing one or more links to medical records not stored on the portable electronic storage device.

11. The computer-readable medium of claim 10, wherein the operations further comprise:

receiving the portable electronic storage device; and

reading the patient data for the individual and the medical records stored on the portable electronic storage device using a storage device reader.

12. The computer-readable medium of claim 11, wherein the operations further comprise:

selecting, by a user of the storage device reader, a link to a medical record included in the second tier; and

retrieving the corresponding medical record from the location specified in the link.

13. The computer-readable medium of claim 10, wherein the tiered hierarchy of medical record storage categories further comprises:

a third tier for storing one or more links to a repository of medical records.

14. The computer-readable medium of claim 13, wherein the operations further comprise:

selecting, by a user of a storage device reader, a link to a repository of medical records included in the third tier; and

querying the repository of medical records at the location specified by the link.

15. The computer-readable medium of claim 10, wherein the patient data includes information related to at least one of allergies, prescriptions, physician contact information, a home address, medical conditions, insurance information, and emergency contact information for the individual.

16. The computer-readable medium of claim 10, wherein the portable electronic storage device contains policies that govern which medical records in the first tier are stored on the portable electronic storage device and which medical records in the second tier are linked directly from the portable electronic storage device.

17. The computer-readable medium of claim 10, wherein the portable electronic storage device is further configured to store metadata associated with the tiered hierarchy of medical records to indicate the content of at least one electronic medical record not directly stored on the portable electronic storage device.

18. The computer-readable medium of claim 10, wherein the portable electronic storage device is a smartcard.

19. A system, comprising:

a portable electronic storage device configured to store a collection of electronic records related to an individual according to a tiered hierarchy of medical record storage categories, wherein the tiered hierarchy includes at least patient data for the individual, a first tier for storing electronic medical records for the individual, and a second tier for storing one or more links to medical records not stored on the portable electronic storage device; and

a reading device configured to access the collection of electronic medical records stored on the portable electronic storage device.

20. The system of claim 19, wherein the patient data includes information related to at least one of allergies, prescriptions, physician contact information, a home address, medical conditions, insurance information, and emergency contact information for the individual.

21. The system of claim 19, wherein the tiered hierarchy of medical record storage categories further comprises:

a third tier for storing one or more links to a repository of medical records.

22. The system of claim 19, wherein the portable electronic storage device contains policies that govern which medical records in the first tier are stored on the portable electronic storage device and which medical records in the second tier are linked directly from the portable electronic storage device.

23. The system of claim 19, wherein the portable electronic storage device is further configured to store metadata associated with the tiered hierarchy of medical records to indicate the content of at least one electronic medical record not directly stored on the portable electronic storage device.

24. The system of claim 19, wherein the portable electronic storage device is a smartcard.