System for monitoring patient supervision by health-care workers

• US 7,496,479 B2
• Filed: 07/21/2006
• Issued: 02/24/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 08/19/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: API Healthcare Corporation (VCS Holdco LLC)
• Original Assignee: API Healthcare Corporation (VCS Holdco LLC)
• Inventors: Kuhlow, Jeffrey A., Schleifer, Nathan A., Dickerson, Bryan D., Peterson, Jeffrey H., Sutcliffe, Gary C., Garcia, Luis, Cook, Michael D.
• Primary Examiner(s): Lau; Tung S
• Assistant Examiner(s): Cherry; Stephen J
• Application Number:
  US11/459,125
• Publication Number:
  US 20070083445A1
• Time in Patent Office: 949 Days
• Field of Search: 702/188, 340/286.07
• US Class Current: 702/188
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/109 Time management, e.g. calendars, reminders, meetings or time accounting
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/1091 Recording time for administrative or management purposes
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 1/10 together with the recording, indicating or registering of other data, e.g. of signs of identity
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 40/20 for the management or administration of healthcare resources or facilities, e.g. managing hospital staff or surgery rooms

Abstract

A monitoring system in a medical facility provides an identification device to a patient and a data acquisition device to a health-care worker. The identification device wirelessly emits a first signal that identifies the patient and the data acquisition device emits a second signal. A determination is made in response to the first signal and the second signal, whether the health-care worker is absent from being near the patient. For example, absence of the health-care worker is determined when a data reader receives only the first signal. This system detects when a patient requiring continuous observation is not in the presence of a health-care worker. In that case, an alarm message is sent to supervisory personnel.

Claims

1. A method for monitoring supervision of a patient by health-care workers, said method comprising:

issuing an identification device to the patient wherein the identification device wirelessly emits a first signal in response to at least one of termination of a time period and receipt of a wireless signal;

issuing a data acquisition device to a health-care worker, wherein the data acquisition device emits a second signal; and

in response to the first signal and the second signal, determining information related to attendance of the health-care worker near the patient.

2. The method as recited in claim 1 further comprising the data acquisition device receiving the first signal, and wherein the second signal indicates receipt of the first signal.

3. The method as recited in claim 2 wherein determining information comprises receiving the second signal and deriving there from information related to attendance of the health-care worker near the patient.

4. The method as recited in claim 1 wherein determining information related to attendance comprises determining whether the health-care worker has been absent from being near the patient during a predetermined time period.

5. The method as recited in claim 1 wherein determining information related to attendance comprises determining whether the health-care worker has been absent from being near the patient.

6. The method as recited in claim 5 further comprising issuing an alarm when the health-care worker has been absent from being near the patient.

7. The method as recited in claim 5 wherein an alarm is emitted when the health-care worker is absent for a predefined period of time.

8. The method as recited in claim 1 wherein the second signal is wireless.

9. The method as recited in claim 1 further comprising in response to the second signal, determining whether the health-care worker is proximate to the patient in response to the patient being near a given location.

10. The method as recited in claim 9 wherein the given location is remote from a bed assigned to the patient.

11. The method as recited in claim 1 further comprising:

determining, in response to the first signal, a first location related to the patient; and

determining, in response to the second signal, a second location related to the health-care worker.

12. The method as recited in claim 11 further comprising producing from the first location and the second location an indication of proximity of the health-care worker to the patient.

13. A method for monitoring supervision of a patient by health-care workers, said method comprising:

issuing an identification device to the patient, wherein the identification device wirelessly emits a first signal that identifies the patient;

issuing a data acquisition device to a health-care worker, wherein the data acquisition device receives the first signal and, upon interrogation, wirelessly emits a second signal indicating whether the first signal was received; and

interrogating the data acquisition device to obtain the second signal; and

in response to contents of the second signal, determining whether the health-care worker has been absent from being near the patient.

14. The method as recited in claim 13 wherein the determining concludes whether the health-care worker has been absent from being near the patient during a predetermined time period.

15. The method as recited in claim 13 further comprising issuing an alarm when the health-care worker has been absent from being near the patient.

16. The method as recited in claim 13 wherein an alarm is emitted when the health-care worker is absent from the patient for a predefined period of time.

17. The method as recited in claim 13 further comprising in response to the second signal, determining whether the health-care worker is absent from being near the patient while the patient is proximate to a given location which is remote from a bed assigned to the patient.

18. A method for monitoring supervision of a patient by health-care workers, said method comprising:

issuing an identification device to the patient wherein the identification device responds to at least one of termination of a time period and receipt of an interrogation signal by emitting a first signal that identifies the patient;

issuing to a health-care worker a data acquisition device that emits a second signal;

providing a data reader at a given location for receiving at least one of the first signal and the second signal; and

in response to the data reader, determining whether the health-care worker is proximate to the patient while the patient is near the given location.

19. The method as recited in claim 18 wherein the data reader is adapted to receive both the first signal and the second signal;

and determining whether the health-care worker is proximate to the patient is performed in response to whether both the first signal and the second signal are received by the data reader.

20. The method as recited in claim 18 wherein the data reader is adapted to receive only the second signal;

and determining whether the health-care worker is proximate to the patient is performed in response to the second signal being received by the data reader.

21. The method as recited in claim 18 further comprising emitting an alarm when a determination is made that the health-care worker is not proximate to the patient.

22. The method as recited in claim 18 wherein the first signal and the second signal are wireless signals.

23. The method as recited in claim 18 further comprising:

the data reader receiving the first signal from the identification device;

deriving a first location in response to the first signal;

the data reader receiving the second signal from the data acquisition device;

deriving a second location in response to the second signal; and

producing from the first location and the second location an indication of proximity of the health-care worker to the patient.

24. The method as recited in claim 18 further comprising:

the data reader interrogating the identification device to obtain the first signal;

deriving a first location in response to the first signal;

the data reader interrogating the data acquisition device to obtain the second signal;

deriving a second location in response to the second signal; and

producing from the first location and the second location an indication of proximity of the health-care worker to the patient.