DEVICE AND METHOD FOR MONITORING THE TREATMENT OF A PATIENT

• US 20140129250A1
• Filed: 11/08/2013
• Published: 05/08/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 11/08/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Fresenius Medical Care Deutschland GmbH (Fresenius Medical Care AG)
• Original Assignee: Fresenius Medical Care Deutschland GmbH (Fresenius Medical Care AG)
• Inventors: DANIEL, Pia, GRAEFE, Marco, LUCKAU, Michael, STEIL, Helmut, WOLF, Klaus
• Granted Patent: US 10,437,958 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/2
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 40/63 for local operation
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 40/67 for remote operation

Abstract

A method for monitoring the treatment of a patient in his home environment comprising the following steps is disclosed:

• • supplying (201) treatment-related data to a home treatment unit,
  • transmitting (202) the treatment-related data from the treatment unit to a remote monitoring unit for monitoring the treatment,
  • analyzing the treatment-related data with respect to an ideal state or a normal state or for the success of a treatment by the monitoring unit (203),
  • detecting a deviation from an ideal state or a normal state (208),
  • requesting (204) additional treatment-related data from the home treatment site with respect to the deviation found,
  • supplying the additional treatment-related data (205), and
  • transmitting the additional treatment-related data to the monitoring unit (206).

Claims

1. A method for monitoring the treatment of a patient in his home environment, comprising the following steps:

supplying (201) treatment-related data to a home treatment unit, transmitting (202) the treatment-related data from the treatment unit to a remote monitoring unit for monitoring the treatment, analyzing the treatment-related data with respect to an ideal state or a normal state or for the success of a treatment by the monitoring unit (203),

ascertaining a deviation from an ideal state or a normal state (208),

requesting (204) additional treatment-related data from the home treatment site with respect to the deviation found,

supplying the additional treatment-related data (205), and

transmitting the additional treatment-related data to the monitoring unit (206).

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the step of ascertaining a deviation from an ideal state or a normal state (203) comprises an allocation to a certain symptom cluster, and wherein the request for additional treatment-related data is made as a function of the specific symptom cluster.

4. The method according to claim 2, wherein a certain evaluation algorithm determined on the basis of the symptom cluster is used for the assignment of priority with respect to a need for intervention and/or a need for a check on a treatment by a caregiver and/or a visual observation of a patient by a caregiver.

6. The method according to claim 1, wherein the treatment-related data are supplied at a plurality of points in time and wherein the analysis of the treatment-related data comprises a time series analysis.

7. The method according to claim 1, wherein the monitoring unit (105) is part of a hospital information system, in which authentication means (151) are provided for authentication of a certain patient or a certain caregiver, comprising the following steps:

use of the treatment unit (102) for input of authentication data by an authentication means for authenticating a patient or a caregiver in the hospital information system, and authentication of the patient on the basis of the input authentication data.

8. The method according to claim 1, wherein the treatment unit (102) is a blood treatment machine, preferably a hemodialysis machine or a peritoneal dialysis machine.

9. The method according to claim 8, wherein the monitoring unit (105) is part of a hospital information system, in which guidelines with ideal values for a hemodialysis treatment to be performed or a peritoneal dialysis treatment to be performed are stored as one or more data records, wherein the analysis of the treatment-related data is performed with regard to a deviation from the setpoint specifications of the guidelines.

10. The method according to claim 8, wherein the treatment-related data or the additional treatment-related data are selected from a list of:

a dialysis dose,

an ultrafiltration volume,

bioimpedance data including a body composition and/or hyperhydration detected by means of bioimpedance data,

a blood pressure,

a patient'"'"'s body temperature,

image data on a catheter inlet/outlet site,

a patient'"'"'s weight.

11. The method according to claim 10, wherein the analysis of the image data of a catheter inlet/outlet site includes automatic image processing of the image data.

12. The method according to claim 1, wherein the treatment-related data or the additional treatment-related data are traced back to user input at a user interface of the treatment unit and wherein the user input relates to the answers to questions to the patient.

13. A monitoring unit (105) for monitoring a patient'"'"'s treatment in his home environment, comprising:

an interface (402) for receiving treatment-related data from a treatment unit, an output unit (403) and a processing unit (401) adapted for performing a method according to claim 1.

14. The monitoring system (100) for monitoring the treatment of a patient during a treatment in his home environment, comprising:

a treatment unit (102) for treatment of the patient and a monitoring unit (105) according to claim 13.

15. A computer program product comprising:

program code parts adapted for performing a method according to claim 1.

3. The method for monitoring a plurality of treatments of patients in their respective home environment, comprising the following steps:

supplying a plurality of treatment-related data originating from a plurality of home treatment units (201, 301);

analyzing the plurality of treatment-related data with respect to a particular ideal state or normal state or the result of a treatment by the monitoring unit (303);

assigning a priority (304) with respect to the need for intervention and/or the need for checking on a treatment by a caregiver and/or a visual observation of a patient by the caregiver;

directing the attention of a caregiver (305) to a certain patient as a function of the assigned priority.

5. The method for monitoring the treatment of a patient according to claim 3, comprising the following step:

using an expert system for analysis of the plurality of treatment-related data.