Methods, systems, and computer program products for providing an information storage management system

• US 8,543,419 B2
• Filed: 12/20/2007
• Issued: 09/24/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 12/20/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Beijing Zitiao Network Technology Company Limited (ByteDance Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Reed, Paul
• Primary Examiner(s): NGUYEN, HIEP VAN
• Application Number:
  US11/961,552
• Publication Number:
  US 20090164246A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,105 Days
• Field of Search: 705/3
• US Class Current: 705/3
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 10/60 for patient-specific data, e.g. for electronic patient records
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 30/20 for handling medical images, e.g. DICOM, HL7 or PACS

Abstract

Methods, systems, and computer program products for providing a policy-based information storage management system for digital assets are provided. The storage management system includes multiple physical storage subsystems, each with deterministic storage characteristics. A method includes receiving a data item related to a subject and looking up a record for the subject. The record identifies corresponding digital assets that are stored in the storage subsystems. The method also includes applying a policy to the corresponding digital assets based upon the data item. The method further includes determining a subset of the digital assets in the record that are relevant to the data item. The relevance determination is made in response to application of the policy. The method also includes migrating the relevant digital assets to at least one designated storage subsystem, based upon corresponding storage characteristics, for expediting access to the relevant digital assets.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

providing, via a computer processor, matrices of symptoms and corresponding conditions, wherein selected groupings of the symptoms and the corresponding conditions are mapped from the matrices to digital asset types, the digital asset types representing types of diagnostic testing performed for the corresponding conditions;

receiving a data item related to a patient, the data item comprising at least one of the symptoms from the matrices;

looking up a record for the patient via the computer processor, the record identifying digital assets for the patient that are stored in the storage subsystems;

applying, via the computer processor, a policy to the digital assets using the matrices and based upon the data item, the policy defining a minimum number of a group of the symptoms related to a diagnosis;

selecting a subset of the digital assets in the record, the subset selected responsive to the applying the policy; and

migrating, via the computer processor, the subset of the digital assets to at least one designated storage subsystem, based upon corresponding storage characteristics, operable for expediting access to the subset of the digital assets;

wherein the data item further includes a severity value assigned to the symptom, and the policy comprises a minimum threshold of the severity value.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the record stores patient medical data and the data item further includes at least one of:

patient personal data; and

patient diagnoses.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the digital assets include at least one of a(n):

MRI;

CT scan;

Ultrasound;

x-ray; and

lab test results.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the data item further includes a date acknowledged for the symptom;

wherein the policy comprises a pre-defined range of dates.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the data item further includes a mass casualty and the policy comprises a storage plan for digital assets using storage capacities associated with the storage subsystems.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein receiving the data item includes collecting data from a medical examination session via a medical dictation device, and

wherein the selecting a subset of the digital assets in the record includes parsing a dictation session comprising the data item and mapping the data item to corresponding digital assets in the record.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein determining a subset of the digital asserts includes:

identifying a portion of at least one of the subset of the digital assets that includes a feature of interest to a clinician, the feature specifying an aspect of a health condition captured in the at least one of the subset of the digital assets; and

partitioning the digital asset that includes the feature into segments;

wherein migrating the subset of the digital assets to a designated one of the storage subsystems includes storing the segment that contains the feature in the designated storage subsystem and storing remaining segments of the digital asset in another storage subsystem that has slower access time than the designated storage subsystem.

8. A system, comprising:

a computer processing device in communication with storage subsystems; and

an information storage management application executing on the computer processing device, the information storage management application implementing a method, comprising;

providing matrices of symptoms and corresponding conditions, wherein selected groupings of the symptoms and the corresponding conditions are mapped from the matrices to digital asset types, the digital asset types representing types of diagnostic testing performed for the corresponding conditions;

receiving a data item related to a patient, the data item comprising at least one of the symptoms from the matrices;

looking up a record for the patient, the record identifying digital assets for the patient that are stored in the storage subsystems;

applying a policy to the digital assets using the matrices and based upon the data item, the policy defining a minimum number of a group of the symptoms related to a diagnosis;

selecting a subset of the digital assets in the record, the subject selected responsive to the applying the policy; and

migrating the subset of the digital assets to at least one designated storage subsystem, based on corresponding storage characteristics, operable for expediting access to the subset of the digital assets;

wherein the data item further includes a severity value assigned to the symptom, and the policy comprises a minimum threshold of the severity value.

9. The system of claim 8, wherein the record stores patient medical data and the data item further includes at least one of:

patient personal data; and

patient diagnoses.

10. The system of claim 8, wherein the digital assets include at least one of a(n):

MRI;

CT scan;

Ultrasound;

x-ray; and

lab test results.

11. The system of claim 8, wherein the data item further includes a date acknowledged for the symptom;

wherein the policy comprises a pre-defined range of dates.

12. The system of claim 8, wherein the data item further includes a mass casualty and the policy comprises a storage plan for digital assets using storage capacities associated with the storage subsystems.

13. The system of claim 8, wherein receiving the data item includes collecting data from a medical examination session via a medical dictation device, and

wherein the selecting a subset of the digital assets in the record includes parsing a dictation session comprising the data item and mapping the data item to corresponding digital assets in the record.

14. A computer program product comprising a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium having instructions embodied thereon, which when executed by a computer, causes the computer to implement a method, the method comprising:

providing matrices of symptoms and corresponding conditions, wherein selected groupings of the symptoms and the corresponding conditions are mapped from the matrices to digital asset types, the digital asset types representing types of diagnostic testing performed for the corresponding conditions;

receiving a data item related to a patient, the data item comprising at least one of the symptoms from the matrices;

looking up a record for the patient, the record identifying digital assets for the patient that are stored in the storage subsystems;

applying a policy to the digital assets using the matrices and based upon the data item, the policy defining a minimum number of a group of the symptoms related to a diagnosis;

selecting a subset of the digital assets in the record, the subset selected responsive to the applying the policy; and

migrating the subset of the digital assets to at least one designated storage subsystem, based on corresponding storage characteristics, operable for expediting access to the subset of the digital assets;

wherein the data item further includes a severity value assigned to the symptom, wherein the policy comprises a minimum threshold of the severity value.

15. The computer program product of claim 14, wherein the record stores patient medical data and the data item further includes at least one of:

patient personal data; and

patient diagnoses.

16. The computer program product of claim 14, wherein the digital assets include at least one of a(n):

MRI;

CT scan;

Ultrasound;

x-ray; and

lab test results.

17. The computer program product of claim 14, wherein the data item further includes a date acknowledged for the symptom;

wherein the policy comprises a pre-defined range of dates.

18. The computer program product of claim 14, wherein the data item further includes a mass casualty and the policy comprises a storage plan for digital assets using storage capacities associated with the storage subsystems.

19. The computer program product of claim 14, wherein receiving the data item includes collecting data from a medical examination session via a medical dictation device, and

wherein the selecting a subset of the digital assets in the record includes parsing a dictation session comprising the data item and mapping the data item to corresponding digital assets in the record.