CONTROLLING AND OPTIMIZING PATIENT PATHWAYS WITHIN AND ACROSS HEALTH CARE FACILITIES

• US 20090248439A1
• Filed: 04/01/2008
• Published: 10/01/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 04/01/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Cerner Innovation, Inc. (Oracle Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Siemens AG
• Inventors: Huber, Peter, Becker, Michael, Haider, Sultan
• Granted Patent: US 8,121,859 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/2
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06 Resources, workflows, human or project management; Enterprise or organisation planning; Enterprise or organisation modelling
• 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: G16Z 99/00 Subject matter not provided for in other main groups of this subclass

Abstract

The present invention relates to a system to control and optimize clinical pathways of a plurality of patients within a medical facility as well as across several medical facilities. The method of controlling and optimizing pathways uses real-time localization devices for patients, resources, such as clinical images and employees of the medical facility (e.g. a service technician, a senior consultant or the like). Based on the local position of patients, staff members and/or resources, the system proposes a medical system that generates clinical pathways for patients, is adapted to change clinical pathways and to provide schedules for patients as well as the use of resources.

The invention provides further means of real-time information of patients about changes in their schedule. The method provided enables a medical facility to streamline their processes and to increase patient throughput.

Claims

1. Method for controlling a clinical pathway for a patient in a medical facility, comprising the steps of:

Providing at least one clinical pathway with a plurality of necessary process steps out of a plurality of all possible process steps;

Determining resources for carrying out the necessary process steps;

Identifying a local position of the patient;

Identifying a local position of at least one resource being determined;

Controlling the clinical pathway by means of determining a schedule for the necessary process steps, based on the identified local position of the patient and on the identified local positions of the resources.

2. Method according to claim 1, wherein providing a clinical pathway comprises generating at least one new clinical pathway and/or modifying a plurality of existing clinical pathways.

3. Method according to claim 1, wherein the method comprises:

Receiving relevant parameters;

Determining necessary process steps for the clinical pathway, comprising determining at least one medical modality;

Considering relevant parameters, time-related parameters, position-related parameters and the necessary process steps for the clinical pathway.

4. Method according to claim 1, wherein the resources may comprise human resources and/or mobile resources and/or resources that normally do not change their location.

5. Method according to claim 1, wherein identifying the local position is based on RFID technology, wherein at least one patient and/or at least one resource being determined are equipped with an RFID transponder and the medical facility is equipped with at least one RFID reader.

6. Method according to claim 1, wherein the identification of the local position is based on WLAN.

7. Method according to claim 1, wherein the identification of the local position is based on optical determination by means of a camera.

8. Method according to claim 1, wherein the controlling is done in real time.

9. Method according to claim 1, wherein all of the necessary process steps or a selection of the necessary process steps are carried out automatically.

10. Method according to claim 1, wherein a result of the controlling comprises:

Determining alternative process steps;

Generating a forecast for the clinical pathway or for separate necessary process steps, comprising notifying about possible delays.

11. Method according to claim 10, wherein the result of the controlling is displayed graphically, comprising a time schedule of each of the necessary process steps and/or the clinical pathway as a whole.

12. Method according to claim 1, wherein personalized information (such as, but not limited to, schedule information related to a clinical pathway) for at least one patient or at least one staff member is automatically communicated only to the person'"'"'s location by telecommunicative means (such as, but not limited to, a loudspeaker or a graphical display).

13. Method according to claim 1, wherein the method comprises:

assigning a unique electronic patient identification to at least one of the patients and/or assigning a unique electronic resource identification to at least one of the resources;

assigning a time stamp to each of the identified local positions.

14. Method according to claim 1, wherein the method and particularly the steps of identifying and/or controlling are carried out for a given point in time.

17. Computer program product being loadable in a memory of a computer, wherein the computer program is adapted to carry out the steps of the method according to claim 1.

15. Clinical system for a medical facility, comprising:

a controller for controlling a plurality of clinical pathways for at least one patient in the medical facility;

a clinical pathway generation module for providing a plurality of clinical pathways with a plurality of necessary process steps out of all possible process steps;

a resource determination module for determining resources for carrying out the necessary process steps;

a plurality of local position identifiers for identifying a local position for at least one patient and/or for the plurality of resources being determined;

wherein the controller is adapted for controlling the clinical pathway for at least one patient by means of determination of a schedule for the plurality of necessary process steps, based on the identified local position of at least one patient and/or on the identified local position of the plurality of resources being determined.

16. Clinical system according to claim 15, wherein the local position identifier is an RFID transponder and wherein the system further comprises at least one RFID reader for reading and/or processing local position information, provided by the RFID transponders.