METHODS, SYSTEMS, AND DEVICES FOR MANAGING MEDICAL IMAGES AND RECORDS

• US 20090112882A1
• Filed: 09/12/2008
• Published: 04/30/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 10/30/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: OneMedNet Corp.
• Original Assignee: OneMedNet Corp.
• Inventors: Yu, Jeffrey N., Maresh, Guy
• Granted Patent: US 8,065,166 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/018 Certifying business or products
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 10/60 for patient-specific data, e.g. for electronic patient records
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 15/00 ICT specially adapted for medical reports, e.g. generation or transmission thereof
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 30/20 for handling medical images, e.g. DICOM, HL7 or PACS
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 40/67 for remote operation

Abstract

The disclosure herein provides methods, systems, and devices for managing, transferring, modifying, converting and/or tracking medical files and/or medical system messages. In certain embodiments, the foregoing may generally be based on requesting medical files at a first medical facility, identifying the requested medical files at a second medical facility, initiating a secure network connection between the first and second medical facility, modifying a header portion of the medical files based on patient identification information created by the first medical facility, and other processing steps.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method of electronically transferring medical files from a source medical facility to a destination medical facility, the method comprising:

receiving at a remote server at the source medical facility an communication to transfer at least one medical file from the source medical facility, wherein the communication comprises at least patient information, and a first encryption key for establishing a secure network connection;

accessing by the remote server at the source medical facility a secure network connection between the source medical facility and the destination medical facility using paired encryption keys comprising at least the first encryption key;

receiving by the remote server at the source medical facility the at least one medical file from the source database for medical files;

sending by the remote server at the medical facility the at least one medical file over the secure network connection to the destination medical facility; and

terminating by the remote server at the medical facility the secure network connection after said transferring.

2. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, further comprising modifying a header portion of the at least one medical file to remove a first patient identification and replace the first patient identification with a second patient identification, wherein the first patient identification is assigned by the source medical facility and the second patient identification is assigned by the destination medical facility.

3. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, further comprising replacing in the header portion a first accession number existing in the header portion with a second accession number assigned by the destination medical facility.

4. The computer-implemented method of claim 2, further comprising creating an audit trail for tracking the transfer of the at least one medical file from the source medical facility to the destination medical facility;

wherein the creating the audit trail comprises further

inserting the first patient identification and first accession number into the private tag in the header portion.

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16. A computer-implemented method of electronically transferring medical files from a source medical facility to a destination medical facility, the method comprising:

receiving a communication to receive at least one medical file from the source medical facility, wherein the communication comprises at least patient information, and a first encryption key for establishing a secure network connection;

accessing a secure network connection between the destination medical facility and the source medical facility using paired encryption keys comprising at least the first encryption key;

receiving the at least one medical file from the source medical facility over the secure network connection; and

terminating the secure network connection after said receiving.

18. The computer-implemented method of claim 16, further comprising:

generating an ORM or equivalent message to instruct a radiology information system, hospital information system, picture archiving and communication system, image server, or other medical system to create a first accession number to be associated with the at least one medical file; and

receiving from the radiology information system, hospital information system, picture archiving and communication system, image server, or other medical system the first accession number;

replacing a second accession number in a header portion of the at least one medical file with the first accession number; and

storing the at least one medical file in the radiology information system, hospital information system, picture archiving and communication system, image server, or other medical system.

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22. A computer-implemented method of electronically transferring medical files from a source medical facility to a destination medical facility, the method comprising:

receiving a request to transfer at least one medical file from the source medical facility, wherein the request comprises at least patient information;

establishing a secure network connection between the source medical facility and the destination medical facility using paired encryption keys;

receiving the at least one medical file from a source database for medical files;

modifying a header portion of the at least one medical file to remove a first patient identification and replace the first patient identification with a second patient identification, wherein the first patient identification is assigned by the source medical facility and the second patient identification is assigned by the destination medical facility;

inserting in the header portion a first accession number to substitute a second accession number existing in the header portion;

transferring the at least one medical file over the secure network connection to the destination medical facility;

terminating the secure network connection after said transferring;

storing in a transaction history database a record of the transfer of the at least one medical file.

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25. A computer-implemented method of electronically transferring medical system messages from a source medical facility to a destination medical facility, the method comprising:

receiving an instruction and/or communication to receive at least one medical system message from the source medical facility, wherein the instruction and/or communication comprises at least patient information, and a first encryption key for establishing a secure network connection;

accessing a secure network connection between the destination medical facility and the source medical facility using paired encryption keys comprising at least the first encryption key;

receiving the at least one medical system message from the source medical facility over the secure network connection; and

terminating the secure network connection after said receiving.

26. (canceled)

27. The computer-implemented method of electronically transferring medical system messages of claim 26, wherein the message type comprises a message format, and further comprising converting based on said determining the at least one medical system message into a second message format.

28. A computer-implemented method of electronically transferring medical files from a source medical facility to a destination medical facility, the method comprising:

receiving a request to transfer at least one medical file from the source medical facility, wherein the request comprises at least patient information, and a first encryption key for establishing a secure network connection;

establishing a secure network connection between the source medical facility and the destination medical facility with the first encryption key and a second encryption key;

receiving the at least one medical file from a source database for medical files;

modifying a header portion of the at least one medical file to add an entry comprising audit trail data to record the transfer of the at least one medical file;

transferring the at least one medical file over the secure network connection to the destination medical facility;

terminating the secure network connection after said transferring.

29. (canceled)

30. A system for electronically transferring medical files from a source medical facility to a destination medical facility, the system comprising:

a request management module configured to process a request to receive at least one medical file from the source medical facility, wherein the request comprises at least patient information, and a first encryption key for accessing a secure network connection;

a communications module for accessing a secure network connection between the destination medical facility and the source medical facility with the first encryption key and a second encryption key;

a filter module configured to modify a header portion of the at least one medical file to remove a first patient identification and replace the first patient identification with a second patient identification, wherein the first patient identification is assigned by the source medical facility and the second patient identification is assigned by the destination medical facility; and

a storage module configured to determine whether to store the at least one medical file in at least one of a picture archiving and communication system, an image server, a radiology information system, and a hospital information system, wherein the determination is based on a file type of the at least one medical file.

31. A system for electronically transferring medical files from a source medical facility to a destination medical facility, the system comprising:

a request management module configured to process a request to receive at least one medical file from the source medical facility, wherein the request comprises at least patient information;

a communications module for establishing a secure network connection between the destination medical facility and the source medical facility using paired encryption keys, wherein the at least one medical file is transferred over the secure network connection;

a filter module configured to modify a header portion of the at least one medical file to add an entry comprising audit trail data to record the transfer of the at least one medical file; and

a storage module configured to determine whether to store the at least one medical file in at least one of a picture archiving and communication system, an image server or other system, a radiology information system, and a hospital information system, wherein the determination is based on a file type of the at least one medical file.

32. The system of claim 31, further comprising a medical procedure mapping module configured to electronically identify a source procedure code associated with the at least one medical file, and electronically mapping the source procedure code to a destination procedure code, and electronically inserting in the header portion the destination procedure code to substitute the source procedure code existing in the header portion.

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36. A computer-implemented method for controlling a permission-based workflow process for transferring medical files from a source medical facility to a destination medical facility, the method comprising:

reviewing a request to transfer at least one medical file from the source medical facility to the destination medical facility, wherein the request further comprises a criteria for the at least one medical file;

locating medical files in a database accessible by the source medical facility that possibly satisfies the criteria, wherein the database is at least a picture archiving and communication system, an image server database, a radiology information system, or a hospital information system or other medical system;

causing to display to a film librarian the located medical files that possibly satisfies the criteria;

receiving from the film librarian a selection of at least one of the located medical files; and

sending an approval to a main server system to approve the transfer of the at least one selected medical file,

wherein the sending causes transferring of the at least one selected medical file from the source medical facility to the destination medical facility.

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44. A system for electronically transferring medical files from a source medical facility to a destination medical facility, the system comprising:

a user interface module configured to receive an approval communication from a user to transfer the at least one medical file, wherein the user manually locates the at least one medical file;

a communications module for sending a request to the destination medical facility based on the approval communication, wherein the request comprises at least patient information, and a first encryption key for establishing a secure network connection between the destination medical facility and the source medical facility with the first encryption key and a second encryption key;

wherein the sending causes receiving of the at least one medical file at the destination medical facility, and modifying of a header portion of the at least one medical file to remove a first patient identification and replace the first patient identification assigned by the source medical facility with a second patient identification assigned by the destination medical facility.

45. A computer-implemented method at a second client server of electronically transferring medical files from a first client server system at a source medical facility to the second client server system at a destination medical facility, the method comprising:

receiving a communication to transfer at least one medical file from the source medical facility to the destination medical facility, wherein the communication comprises at least patient information, and a first encryption key for establishing a secure network connection;

establishing a secure network connection with the first client server system at the source medical facility using the first encryption key and a second encryption key;

receiving the at least one medical file from the first client server system;

modifying a header portion of the at least one medical file to remove a first patient identification and replace the first patient identification with a second patient identification, wherein the first patient identification is assigned by the source medical facility and the second patient identification is assigned by the destination medical facility;

inserting in the header portion a first accession number to substitute a second accession number existing in the header portion, wherein the first accession number is assigned by the destination medical facility and the second accession number is assigned by the source medical facility;

storing through an Health Level 7 connection the at least one medical file in at least one of;

a picture archiving and communication system, a image server, a radiology information system, and a hospital information system; and

terminating the secure network connection.

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52. A computer-implemented method for preventing data loss of medical files at a medical facility, the computer-implemented method comprising:

receiving notification from at least one of a radiology information system, a hospital information system, a picture archiving and communication system, an image server, and other medical system that a medical file has been created or modified;

obtaining the medical file from the at least one radiology information system, hospital information system, picture archiving and communication system, image server, or other medical system;

accessing a secure network connection between the medical facility and a storage facility using paired encryption keys; and

transferring automatically the medical file from the remote server to the storage facility.

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55. A computer-implemented method for transferring and managing medical files at a medical facility to enable teleradiology, the computer-implemented method comprising:

receiving at a source medical facility notification from at least one of a radiology information system, a hospital information system, a picture archiving and communication system, an image server, and other medical system that a medical file has been created or modified;

obtaining the medical file from the at least one radiology information system, hospital information system, picture archiving and communication system, image server, or other medical system;

analyzing the medical file to determine based on a criteria whether to transfer the medical file to a destination medical facility that provides at least one of outsourced radiology film interpretation, analysis, and other medical services;

transferring the medical file from the source medical facility to the destination medical facility based on the analyzing.

57. The computer-implemented method of claim 55 for transferring and managing medical files, wherein the criteria comprises at least a time period for transferring all medical files to the destination medical facility, a time period for storing said medical files at the destination medical facility, a medical expertise required to review the medical file, or an availability of medical professionals at the source medical facility.

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60. A computer-implemented method for verifying and approving a government required release form, the computer-implemented method comprising:

receiving an electronic copy of an executed government required release form from a patient;

analyzing a bar code on the executed government required release form to determine the identity of the patient associated with the government required release form;

correlating the identity obtained from the bar code with at least one medical file associated with the identity of the patient;

verifying using an optical character recognition module a signature on the executed government required release form with prior signatures stored in a database; and

sending an approval communication based on said verifying to a remote server at a source medical facility to allow a transfer of the at least one medical file from the source medical facility to a destination medical facility.

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