Evidence-based healthcare information management protocols

• US 20130173297A1
• Filed: 01/09/2012
• Published: 07/04/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 12/30/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: The Invention Science Fund II, L.L.C. (Intellectual Ventures LLC)
• Original Assignee: Elwha LLC (Intellectual Ventures LLC)
• Inventors: Hyde, Roderick A., Jung, Edward K. Y., Kare, Jordin T., Leuthardt, Eric C., Levien, Royce A., Lord, Richard T., Lord, Robert W., Malamud, Mark A., Rinaldo, John D. Jr., Rivet, Dennis J., Tegreene, Clarence T., Wood, Lowell L. Jr.
• Granted Patent: US 10,402,927 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/3
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/10 Office automation; Time management
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/18 Legal services
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 10/60 for patient-specific data, e.g. for electronic patient records
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 20/10 relating to drugs or medications, e.g. for ensuring correct administration to patients
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 20/30 relating to physical therapies or activities, e.g. physiotherapy, acupressure or exercising

Abstract

Structures and protocols are presented for signaling a decision (processing or transmitting a medical record or other resource, e.g.) conditionally, at least partly based on one or more performance indicia (excess hospital readmissions, e.g.) or therapeutic determinants (prior success, e.g.) or privacy considerations (patient consent, e.g.).

Claims

1. A healthcare information management system comprising:

circuitry for obtaining an indication of a first device associated with and wearable by a patient hospitalized for a particular condition;

circuitry for obtaining an indication of a second device associated with and wearable by a caregiver;

circuitry for causing a recordation of a timestamp as an automatic response to the first device associated with and wearable by the patient and the second device associated with and wearable by the caregiver both being in a single common location; and

circuitry for causing a retrieval of the timestamp in response to an indication of an institutional readmission after the recordation of the timestamp indicating the first device associated with and wearable by the patient and the second device associated with and wearable by the caregiver both having been in the single common location.

2. The healthcare information management system of claim 1, further comprising:

a third device containing the circuitry for obtaining the indication of the first device associated with and wearable by the patient hospitalized for the particular condition and containing the circuitry for obtaining the indication of the second device and containing the circuitry for causing a recordation of a timestamp as an automatic response to the first device associated with and wearable by the patient and the second device associated with and wearable by a caregiver both being in a single common location.

3. The healthcare information management system of claim 1, further comprising:

the first device associated with and wearable by the patient hospitalized for the particular condition, the first device containing the circuitry for obtaining an indication of a second device associated with and wearable by a caregiver.

4. The healthcare information management system of claim 1, further comprising:

circuitry for obtaining an indication whether an individual is compliant with a health regimen, the individual being the patient.

6. The healthcare information management system of claim 1, further comprising:

circuitry for detecting a passive wireless transponder within a vicinity of a vehicle, the vicinity of the vehicle comprising the single common location, the passive wireless transponder being either the first device or the second device.

10. The healthcare information management system of claim 1, further comprising:

circuitry for obtaining an explicit indication whether a record of treating a medical condition in a particular person with a particular protocol contains any extrinsic evidence that treating the medical condition with the particular protocol has precedent, the medical condition being the particular condition, the patient being the particular person.

11. The healthcare information management system of claim 1, further comprising:

circuitry for detecting a wireless device within an effective range of a stationary device, the wireless device being the second device, the stationary device being a third device and being in the single common location.

12. The healthcare information management system of claim 1, further comprising:

circuitry for obtaining an indication that a specific pathology in a particular individual has been treated at a first hospital and an indication that the specific pathology in the particular individual has been treated at a second hospital, the particular individual being the patient, the specific pathology comprising the particular condition.

14. The healthcare information management system of claim 1, further comprising:

circuitry for updating a locally-resident subscriber registry in response to an individual entering a service zone, the individual being the patient.

17. The healthcare information management system of claim 1, further comprising:

circuitry for looking up a communication delay as a function of a therapeutic protocol; and

circuitry for transmitting a query as an automatic response to an expiration of the communication delay, the query identifying a treatment of the particular condition.

18. The healthcare information management system of claim 1, further comprising:

circuitry for receiving a communication delay as data entered by a user, the user being either the patient or the caregiver; and

circuitry for transmitting a query as an automatic response to an expiration of the communication delay.

19. The healthcare information management system of claim 1, further comprising:

circuitry for receiving a communication delay as data entered by a user, the user being either the patient or the caregiver; and

circuitry for transmitting a query as an automatic response to an expiration of the communication delay, the query identifying a treatment of the particular condition.

21. The healthcare information management system of claim 1, further comprising:

circuitry for contacting an individual by a fallback mode of communication as an automatic and conditional response to receiving no reply from the individual by a prior mode of communication, the fallback mode of communication being telephonic, the individual being either the patient or the caregiver.

22. The healthcare information management system of claim 1, further comprising:

circuitry for contacting an individual by a fallback mode of communication as an automatic and conditional response to receiving no reply from the individual by a prior mode of communication, the fallback mode of communication being telephonic, the individual being either the patient or the caregiver, the prior mode of communication being a text-containing message sent to the first device.

24. The healthcare information management system of claim 1, further comprising:

circuitry for retrieving a medical treatment record of one individual selectively in response to an explicit indication of a payment reduction that identifies the one individual, the one individual being the patient, the medical treatment record including the timestamp, the retrieval of the timestamp comprising a retrieval of the medical treatment record of the one individual selectively in response to the explicit indication of the payment reduction that identifies the one individual and in response to the indication of the institutional readmission, the institutional readmission being an admission to a hospital.

25. The healthcare information management system of claim 1, further comprising:

circuitry for retrieving a medical treatment record relating to a set of one or more pathologies selectively in response to an explicit indication of a payment reduction that identifies the set, the set of one or more pathologies including the particular condition.

26. The healthcare information management system of claim 1, further comprising:

circuitry for retrieving a medical treatment record relating to a set of one or more pathologies selectively in response to an explicit indication of a payment reduction that identifies the set, the set of one or more pathologies including the particular condition, the particular condition being at least one of an addiction or chronic pain.

27. The healthcare information management system of claim 1, further comprising:

circuitry for initiating a telephone call between a first individual and a second individual as an automatic response to the first individual not being compliant with a health regimen and to an indication that the second individual is available, the first individual being the patient, the second individual being or not being the caregiver.

28. The healthcare information management system of claim 1, further comprising:

circuitry for signaling a decision whether to transfer a resource to a first individual partly based on an indication that the first individual is not compliant with a health regimen and partly based on an indication that the first individual has accepted a telephone call, the first individual being the patient.

30. The healthcare information management system of claim 1, further comprising:

circuitry for responding to an event with an audible notification, the event comprising a detection of the first device associated with and wearable by the patient and the second device associated with and wearable by a caregiver both being in the single common location.

31. The healthcare information management system of claim 1, further comprising:

circuitry for responding to an event with an audible notification, the event comprising a detection of the first device associated with and wearable by the patient and the second device associated with and wearable by a caregiver both being in the single common location, the audible notification being sounded via a third device in the single common location.

32. The healthcare information management system of claim 1, further comprising:

circuitry for responding to a payment-reduction event relating to a first medical treatment by causing a selective retrieval of one or more records that lack any prominence indication relating to the first medical treatment from an archive that includes at least one prominence indication relating to a second medical treatment, a portion of the first medical treatment having been administered in the single common location.

33. The healthcare information management system of claim 1, further comprising:

circuitry for responding to a payment-reduction event relating to a first medical treatment by causing a selective retrieval of one or more records that lack any prominence indication relating to the first medical treatment from an archive that includes at least one prominence indication relating to a second medical treatment, a portion of the first medical treatment having been administered in the single common location, the selective retrieval of the one or more records that lack any prominence indication relating to the first medical treatment from the archive that includes the at least one prominence indication relating to the second medical treatment including the timestamp and excluding the prominence indication relating to the second medical treatment.

35. The healthcare information management system of claim 1, further comprising:

circuitry for triggering a search of a particular records archive by providing a selective search criterion, one that results in an exclusion of a first element in the particular records archive and an inclusion of a second element in the particular records archive, in response to the indication of the institutional readmission, the first element in the particular records archive including the timestamp, the selective search criterion being configured to filter out the first element after the retrieval of the timestamp.

37. The healthcare information management system of claim 1, further comprising:

circuitry for transmitting a real-time notification to a first person as an automatic response to an interface in a vicinity of a second person detecting a particular event relating to the second person, the caregiver being the first person, the patient being the second person, the particular event relating to the second person being a sensor activation.

38. The healthcare information management system of claim 1, further comprising:

circuitry for transmitting a real-time notification to a first person as an automatic response to an interface in a vicinity of a second person detecting a particular event relating to the second person, the caregiver being the second person, the patient being a third person.

40. The healthcare information management system of claim 1, further comprising:

circuitry for implementing a failsafe preventing medical equipment from operating until an order associating the medical equipment with a patient is received and until an indication is received that the patient is in a vicinity of the medical equipment, the vicinity of the medical equipment comprising the single common location.

42. The healthcare information management system of claim 1, further comprising:

circuitry for implementing a failsafe preventing medical equipment from operating until an order associating the medical equipment with a patient is received and until an indication is received that the patient is in a vicinity of the medical equipment, the vicinity of the medical equipment comprising the single common location, the medical equipment comprising a portable diagnostic device.

134. The healthcare information management system of claim 1, further comprising:

circuitry for transmitting a real-time notification to the caregiver as an automatic response to an interface in a vicinity of the patient detecting a particular event relating to the patient, the interface in the vicinity of the patient including the first device associated with and wearable by the patient hospitalized for the particular condition;

circuitry for retrieving a medical treatment record relating to a set of one or more pathologies selectively in response to an explicit indication of a payment reduction that identifies the set, the set of one or more pathologies including the particular condition;

circuitry for responding to an event with an audible notification, the event comprising a detection of the first device associated with and wearable by the patient and the second device associated with and wearable by the caregiver both being in the single common location, the audible notification being sounded via a fourth device in the single common location;

circuitry for responding to a payment-reduction event relating to a first medical treatment by causing a selective retrieval of one or more records that lack any prominence indication relating to the first medical treatment from an archive that includes at least one prominence indication relating to a second medical treatment, a portion of the first medical treatment having been administered in the single common location, the selective retrieval of the one or more records that lack any prominence indication relating to the first medical treatment from the archive that includes the at least one prominence indication relating to the second medical treatment including the timestamp and excluding the prominence indication relating to the second medical treatment;

circuitry for signaling a decision whether to transfer a resource to the patient partly based on an indication that the patient is not compliant with a health regimen and partly based on an indication that the patient has accepted a telephone call via the first device, the first device comprising a telephone associated with and wearable by the patient, the telephone call being initiated after a release of the patient;

circuitry for contacting an individual by a fallback mode of communication as an automatic and conditional response to receiving no reply from the individual by a prior mode of communication, the fallback mode of communication being telephonic, the individual being either the patient or the caregiver;

circuitry for looking up a communication delay as a function of a medical condition, the particular condition comprising the medical condition; and

circuitry for transmitting a query as an automatic response to an expiration of the communication delay.

135. The healthcare information management system of claim 1, further comprising:

circuitry for triggering a search of a particular records archive by providing a selective search criterion, one that results in an exclusion of a first element in the particular records archive and an inclusion of a second element in the particular records archive, in response to the indication of the institutional readmission, the first element in the particular records archive including the timestamp, the selective search criterion being configured to filter out the first element after the retrieval of the timestamp;

circuitry for contacting an individual by a fallback mode of communication as an automatic and conditional response to receiving no reply from the individual by a prior mode of communication, the fallback mode of communication being telephonic, the individual being either the patient or the caregiver, the prior mode of communication being a text-containing message sent to the first device;

circuitry for transmitting a real-time notification to a first person as an automatic response to an interface in a vicinity of a second person detecting a particular event relating to the second person, the caregiver being the second person, the patient being a third person, the interface in the vicinity of the second person including the first device associated with and wearable by the patient hospitalized for the particular condition;

circuitry for implementing a failsafe preventing medical equipment from operating until an order associating the medical equipment with the patient is received and until an indication is received that the patient is in a vicinity of the medical equipment, the vicinity of the medical equipment comprising the single common location;

circuitry for receiving a communication delay as data entered by a user, the user being either the patient or the caregiver; and

circuitry for transmitting a query as an automatic response to an expiration of the communication delay.

136. The healthcare information management system of claim 1, further comprising:

the first device associated with and wearable by the patient hospitalized for the particular condition, the first device containing the circuitry for obtaining the indication of the second device associated with and wearable by the caregiver;

circuitry for retrieving a medical treatment record of the patient selectively in response to an explicit indication of a payment reduction that identifies the patient;

circuitry for obtaining an indication whether the patient is compliant with a health regimen, the health regimen comprising a treatment of the particular condition, the treatment of the particular condition including a diagnostic component and a therapeutic component, the therapeutic component including a hospitalization for the particular condition;

circuitry for updating a locally-resident subscriber registry in response to the patient entering a service zone, the service zone comprising a hospital, the locally-resident subscriber registry residing within the hospital, the institutional readmission being an admission to the hospital; and

circuitry for initiating a telephone call between a first individual and a second individual as an automatic response to the first individual not being compliant with a health regimen and to an indication that the second individual is available, the first individual being the patient, the second individual being or not being the caregiver.

137. The healthcare information management system of claim 1, further comprising:

circuitry for detecting a passive wireless transponder within a vicinity of a vehicle, the vicinity of the vehicle comprising the single common location, the passive wireless transponder being either the first device or the second device, the vehicle being a third device;

circuitry for determining whether the second device is in a vicinity of the first device, the single common location comprising the vicinity of the first device, the vicinity of the first device being a direct operating range of the first device;

circuitry for implementing a failsafe preventing medical equipment from operating until an order associating the medical equipment with a patient is received and until an indication is received that the patient is in a vicinity of the medical equipment, the medical equipment comprising the second device;

circuitry for updating a locally-resident subscriber registry in response to the patient entering a service zone;

circuitry for retrieving a medical treatment record of the patient selectively in response to an explicit indication of a payment reduction that identifies the patient, the medical treatment record including the timestamp, the retrieval of the timestamp comprising a retrieval of the medical treatment record of the patient selectively in response to the explicit indication of the payment reduction that identifies the patient and in response to the indication of the institutional readmission, the institutional readmission being an admission to a hospital;

circuitry for obtaining an indication that a specific pathology in the patient has been treated at a first hospital and an indication that the specific pathology in the patient has been treated at a second hospital, the specific pathology comprising the particular condition; and

circuitry for retrieving a medical treatment record relating to a set of one or more pathologies selectively in response to an explicit indication of a payment reduction that identifies the set, the set of one or more pathologies including the particular condition, the particular condition being at least one of an addiction or chronic pain.

5. (canceled)

7-9. -9. (canceled)

13. (canceled)

15-16. -16. (canceled)

20. (canceled)

23. (canceled)

29. (canceled)

34. (canceled)

36. (canceled)

39. (canceled)

41. (canceled)

43. A healthcare information management system comprising:

means for obtaining an indication of a first device associated with and wearable by a patient hospitalized for a particular condition;

means for obtaining an indication of a second device associated with and wearable by a caregiver;

means for causing a recordation of a timestamp as an automatic response to the first device associated with and wearable by the patient and the second device associated with and wearable by the caregiver both being in a single common location; and

means for causing a retrieval of the timestamp in response to an indication of an institutional readmission after the recordation of the timestamp indicating the first device associated with and wearable by the patient and the second device associated with and wearable by the caregiver both having been in the single common location.

44-65. -65. (canceled)

66. A healthcare information management method comprising:

obtaining an indication of a first device associated with and wearable by a patient hospitalized for a particular condition;

obtaining an indication of a second device associated with and wearable by a caregiver;

invoking circuitry for causing a recordation of a timestamp as an automatic response to the first device associated with and wearable by the patient and the second device associated with and wearable by the caregiver both being in a single common location; and

causing a retrieval of the timestamp in response to an indication of an institutional readmission after the recordation of the timestamp indicating the first device associated with and wearable by the patient and the second device associated with and wearable by the caregiver both having been in the single common location.

67-88. -88. (canceled)

89. An article of manufacture for healthcare information management comprising:

one or more physical media configured to bear a device-detectable implementation of a method including at least

obtaining an indication of a first device associated with and wearable by a patient hospitalized for a particular condition;

obtaining an indication of a second device associated with and wearable by a caregiver;

causing a recordation of a timestamp as an automatic response to the first device associated with and wearable by the patient and the second device associated with and wearable by the caregiver both being in a single common location; and

causing a retrieval of the timestamp in response to an indication of an institutional readmission after the recordation of the timestamp indicating the first device associated with and wearable by the patient and the second device associated with and wearable by the caregiver both having been in the single common location.

90-110. -110. (canceled)

111. An article of manufacture for healthcare information management comprising:

one or more physical media bearing a device-detectable output indicating an occurrence of

obtaining an indication of a first device associated with and wearable by a patient hospitalized for a particular condition;

obtaining an indication of a second device associated with and wearable by a caregiver;

causing a recordation of a timestamp as an automatic response to the first device associated with and wearable by the patient and the second device associated with and wearable by the caregiver both being in a single common location; and

causing a retrieval of the timestamp in response to an indication of an institutional readmission after the recordation of the timestamp indicating the first device associated with and wearable by the patient and the second device associated with and wearable by the caregiver both having been in the single common location.

112-133. -133. (canceled)