Electronically readable medical locking system

• US 5,272,318 A
• Filed: 11/18/1991
• Issued: 12/21/1993
• Est. Priority Date: 11/18/1991
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Novate Medical Limited (Boston Scientific Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Novate Medical Limited (Boston Scientific Corporation)
• Inventors: Gorman, John G.
• Primary Examiner(s): Westin, Edward P.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Lee, John R.
• Application Number:
  US07/793,460
• Time in Patent Office: 764 Days
• Field of Search: 235/375, 235/382, 235/383, 235/385, 235/462, 235/472
• US Class Current: 235/375
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 2205/6009 for matching patient with his treatment, e.g. to improve transfusion security
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 17/00 Methods or arrangements for effecting co-operative working between equipments covered by two or more of main groups G06K1/00 - G06K15/00, e.g. automatic card files incorporating conveying and reading operations

Abstract

A system which requires scanning of identification means associated with a patient and a proposed treatment in order to determine a code necessary to open or render operational a treatment means is disclosed. Because the necessary code is only displayed if the patient and treatment means have been scanned and the information has been audited to verify that it is correct and complete and has been automatically recorded in the scanner'"'"'s memory, the system ensures that a record of the transaction is made and that only the proper patient is given a particular treatment.

Claims

1. A medical safety and recordkeeping system which cannot be bypassed comprising:

(a) a machine readable identification means associated with a patient;

(b) a treatment means;

(c) a machine readable identification means for the treatment means;

(d) locking means for said treatment means;

(e) lock code identification means containing information which is readable only by machine;

(f) scanning means for reading the patient, treatment identification and lock code identification means and for visually displaying the lock code information in man-readable form when the patient identification means and the treatment identification means match; and

(g) memory means associated with said scanning means for automatically recording information from the patient and treatment identification means, whereby a record of each patient transaction is automatically created.

2. The system of claim 1 wherein the patient identification means is a bar code on a patient'"'"'s wristband.

3. The system of claim 1 wherein the treatment identification means is a bar code.

4. The system of claim 1 wherein the locking means is a combination lock.

5. The system of claim 1 wherein the scanning means is a bar code scanning wand.

6. The system of claim 1 further comprising administrator identification means which must be scanned before the lock code can be displayed.

7. The system of claim 1 further comprising clock means to provide the time of administration of the treatment which is recorded by the memory means along with the patient identification and treatment information.

8. A medical safety and recordkeeping system which cannot be bypassed comprising:

(a) a treatment means;

(b) a machine readable identification means for the treatment means;

(c) locking means for said treatment means;

(d) lock code identification means containing information;

(e) scanning means for reading the treatment identification and lock code identification means and for visually displaying the lock code information in man-readable form; and

(f) memory means associated with said scanning means for automatically recording information from the treatment identification means, whereby a record of each transaction is automatically created.