Dashboard diagnostics for wireless patient communicator

• US 20090063193A1
• Filed: 05/09/2008
• Published: 03/05/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 08/31/2007
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Cardiac Pacemakers Incorporated (Boston Scientific Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Cardiac Pacemakers Incorporated (Boston Scientific Corporation)
• Inventors: Parkinson, Rob, Johnson, David C., Gryzwa, Mark, Mass, William, LaLonde, John, Hoyme, Kenneth, Barton, Mike, Gaskill, Robert
• Application Number:
  US12/151,796
• Publication Number:
  US 20090063193A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/3
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/0026 characterised by the transmission medium
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/747 in case of emergency, i.e. alerting emergency services
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/37211 Means for communicating with stimulators
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/37282 characterised by communication with experts in remote locations using a network
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 21/02 Alarms for ensuring the safety of persons
• CPC Class Codes: G08C 17/02 using a radio link
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 10/60 for patient-specific data, e.g. for electronic patient records
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 40/20 for the management or administration of healthcare resources or facilities, e.g. managing hospital staff or surgery rooms
• 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
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/12 specially adapted for proprietary or special-purpose networking environments, e.g. medical networks, sensor networks, networks in vehicles or remote metering networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/04 Key management, e.g. using generic bootstrapping architecture [GBA]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/06 Authentication
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/50 Secure pairing of devices

Abstract

Portable patient communicators (PPCs) comprise a first radio configured to communicate wirelessly with a patient implantable medical device (PIMD) associated with the PPC and a second radio configured to communicate wirelessly with a network. Memory is configured to store at least first information about wireless connectivity between the PPC and its associated PIMD. A processor is coupled to the memory and the first and second radios. A power source is configured to supply power to components of the PPC. The processor is configured to coordinate discontinuous communication between the PPC and its associated PIMD via the first radio and coordinate discontinuous communication between the PPC and the network via the second radio. The processor is configured to coordinate wireless transmission of the first information to a remote server via the network, and the remote server receives second information about wireless connectivity between each of the PPCs and the network.

Claims

1. A method implemented via a network for acquiring information about a plurality of medical devices (PIMDs) implanted in ambulatory patients, the method comprising:

acquiring first information for a plurality of patient portable communication devices (PPCs) about wireless connectivity between each PPC and its associated PIMD, wherein connectivity between each PPC and its associated PIMD is discontinuous;

wirelessly transmitting the first information from the PPCs to a remote location via the network; and

acquiring second information about wireless connectivity between each PPC and the network, wherein wireless connectivity between each PPC and the network is discontinuous, the second information provided at the remote location.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the second information is acquired by each of the PPCs.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the second information is acquired at the remote location.

4. The method of claim 1, comprising receiving the first and second information at the remote location and storing the first and second information at the remote location.

5. The method of claim 4, comprising displaying the first and second information at the remote location or other remote location.

6. The method of claim 1, comprising displaying the first and second information.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein:

the first information comprises information about one or more of connection signal strength, connection status, most recent data transfer, most recent connection link established, battery status, and faults status; and

the second information comprises information about one or more of connection signal strength, connection status, most recent data transfer, transfer rate metrics for at least the most recent data transfer, most recent connection link established, timestamped connectivity link change history since the each PPC connected to the network, battery status, faults status, PPC location, type of connection, PPC dock status, and PPC/network check-in status.

8. The method of claim 1, comprising selecting one or a subset of the PPCs, and displaying the first and second information about the selected PPC or subset of PPCs at the remote location or other remote location.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the first and second information comprises physiologic data acquired by the PIMDs or the PPCs.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the first and second information comprises one or both of physiologic data and contextual data about the ambulatory patients.

11. The method of claim 10, comprising displaying two or more of connection, physiologic, contextual, and physician data at the remote location or other remote location.

12. The method of claim 1, comprising streaming PIMD data via the PIMDs associated PPC for presentation at the remote location or other remote location.

13. The method of claim 1, comprising initiating, from the remote location or other remote location, an interrogation of one or more of the PIMDs.

14. The method of claim 1, comprising initiating, from the remote location or other remote location, an update to a configuration, firmware, or software of one or both of the PIMDs and the PPCs.

15. The method of claim 1, wherein communications between each PPC and its associated PIMD conform to regulatory guidelines governing medical device communications.

16. A method implemented via a network for acquiring information about a plurality of medical devices (PIMDs) implanted in ambulatory patients, the method comprising:

acquiring first information for a plurality of patient portable communication devices (PPCs) about wireless connectivity between each PPC and its associated PIMD, wherein connectivity between each PPC and at its associated PIMD is discontinuous;

wirelessly transmitting the first information from the PPCs to a remote location via the network;

acquiring second information about wireless connectivity between each PPC and the network, wherein wireless connectivity between each PPC and the network is discontinuous, the second information provided at the remote location;

storing the first and second information at the remote location;

providing access to the stored first and second information to a plurality of remote devices; and

transmitting selected first and second information to one or more of the remote devices.

17. The method of claim 16, comprising displaying the first and second information by the one or more remote devices.

18. The method of claim 16, wherein:

the first information comprises information about one or more of connection signal strength, connection status, most recent data transfer, most recent connection link established, battery status, and faults status; and

the second information comprises information about one or more of connection signal strength, connection status, most recent data transfer, transfer rate metrics for at least the most recent data transfer, most recent connection link established, timestamped connectivity link change history since the each PPC connected to the network, battery status, faults status, PPC location, type of connection, PPC dock status, and PPC/network check-in status.

19. The method of claim 16, comprising selecting one or a subset of the PPCs, and displaying the first and second information about the selected PPC or subset of PPCs by the one or more remote devices.

20. The method of claim 16, wherein the first and second information comprises physiologic data acquired by the PIMDs or the PPCs.

21. The method of claim 20, wherein the first and second information comprises one or both of physiologic data and contextual data about the ambulatory patients.

22. The method of claim 21, comprising displaying two or more of connection, physiologic, contextual, and physician data by the one or more remote devices.

23. The method of claim 16, comprising streaming PIMD data via the PIMDs associated PPC for presentation by the one or more remote devices.

24. The method of claim 16, comprising initiating, by the one or more remote devices, an interrogation of one or more of the PIMDs.

25. The method of claim 16, comprising initiating, from the remote location or other remote location, an update to a configuration, firmware, or software of one or both of the PIMDs and the PPCs.

26. A system implementable via a network for acquiring information about a plurality of medical devices (PIMDs) implanted in ambulatory patients, the system comprising:

a plurality of patient portable communication devices (PPCs), each of the PPCs comprising;

a first radio configured to communicate wirelessly with a PIMD associated with the PPC;

a second radio configured to communicate wirelessly with the network;

a memory configured to store at least first information about wireless connectivity between the PPC and its associated PIMD;

a processor coupled to the memory and the first and second radios, the processor coordinating discontinuous communication between the PPC and its associated PIMD via the first radio and coordinating discontinuous communication between the PPC and the network via the second radio; and

a power source configured to supply power to components of the PPC;

wherein the processor is configured to coordinate wireless transmission of the first information to a remote server via the network, the remote server receiving second information about wireless connectivity between each of the PPCs and the network.

27. The system of claim 26, wherein each of the PPCs is configured to acquire and store the second information.

28. The system of claim 26, wherein a processor of the network server is configured to acquire and store the second information for each of the PPCs.

29. The system of claim 26, wherein the memory stores medical firmware and wireless radio firmware, the processor configured to execute program instructions of the medical firmware to ensure that communications between the first radio and the PIMD conform to regulatory guidelines governing medical device communications.

30. A system implementable via a network for acquiring information about a plurality of medical devices (PIMDs) implanted in ambulatory patients, the system comprising:

a server system, comprising;

a network interface configured to establish connectivity with a plurality of portable communication devices (PPCs) via the network, each of the PPCs configured to effect wireless communications with an associated PIMD and to establish wireless connectivity with the network, and

a server coupled to the network interface and configured to receive information from the PPCs via the network interface, the information comprising connection information about connectivity between each PIMD and its corresponding PPC and connectivity between each PPC and the network; and

a system remote from the server system, the remote system comprising;

a communications interface configured to provide connectivity with the server system via the network;

a user interface comprising a display; and

a processor coupled to the communications interface and the user interface, the processor configured to present PIMD-PPC connection information and PPC-network connection information on the display.

31. The system of claim 30, wherein each of the PPCs is configured to acquire and store the second information.

32. The system of claim 30, wherein a processor of the network server is configured to acquire and store the second information for each of the PPCs.