Method and system for managing medical professionals

• US 8,073,713 B2
• Filed: 02/04/2009
• Issued: 12/06/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 02/08/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Premerus LLC
• Original Assignee: Premerus LLC
• Inventors: Thorne, Curtis J., Allen, Gregg Phillip
• Primary Examiner(s): Najarian, Lena
• Application Number:
  US12/365,796
• Publication Number:
  US 20090204436A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,035 Days
• Field of Search: 705/2, 705/3
• US Class Current: 705/3
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06398 Performance of employee with respect to a job function
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/10 Office automation; Time management
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/08 Insurance
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 10/60 for patient-specific data, e.g. for electronic patient records
• 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 system and method for improving medical care through tracking reported findings or diagnoses of patient medical conditions and feeding back actual medical conditions and patient medical condition outcomes to determine accuracy of the reported findings. By feeding back the actual medical conditions and patient medical condition outcomes, a quantitative measure of each reported finding of each medical professional can be determined. One medical professional expertise in which the feedback system can be particularly useful is with medical image reading professionals, as this medical professional expertise provides a basis for other medical professionals to determine treatment and/or additional testing options.

Claims

1. A method for managing a network of medical image reading professionals, said method comprising:

collecting, by a computing system, information associated with patients of medical image reading professionals in a network of medical image reading professionals, the patient information including clinical condition information, the collecting of information associated with patients including collecting sets of medical images;

monitoring reported findings of a clinical condition of each patient by a medical image reading professional including monitoring the diagnosis of each patient by the medical image reading professional in reading the sets of medical images, the monitoring of reported findings including at least one of analyzing medical insurance claims, analyzing treatment reports, and analyzing random quality assurance medical image readings;

determining, by the computing system, whether the reported findings of the clinical condition of each patient by the medical image reading professional is accurate compared to actual clinical condition of each respective patient;

generating a score for each reported finding by the medical image reading professional, the score being indicative of accuracy of each reported finding as compared to the actual clinical condition of the patient, the generating of a score including applying a predetermined score for each of an accurate, false positive, false negative, or false equivocal reported finding being correct or incorrect;

calculating a summary score of the scores for the medical image reading professional; and

based on the summary score of the medical image reading professional, determining whether the medical image reading professional is to remain in the network of medical image reading professionals, and, if not, removing the medical image reading professional from the network of medical image reading professionals; and

sending more medical images to medical image reading professionals with higher scores than medical image reading professionals with lower scores.

2. The method according to claim 1, further comprising determining an equivocal ratio for the medical image reading professional.

3. The method according to claim 1, further comprising determining a total number of reported findings by the medical image reading professional over a given time period.

4. The method according to claim 1, wherein generating a summary score includes generating an average score.

5. The method according to claim 1, wherein monitoring reported findings by a medical image reading professional includes monitoring reported findings by a medical image reading professional who specializes in reading medical images of a particular anatomical region.

6. The method according to claim 5, further comprising generating a report that includes (i) a plurality of medical image reading professionals who specialize in reading medical images of the particular anatomical region and (ii) respective summary scores, the medical image reading professional and associated summary score being included in the report.