Methods, apparatuses and computer program products for facilitating location and retrieval of health information in a healthcare system

• US 8,805,900 B2
• Filed: 03/30/2012
• Issued: 08/12/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 03/30/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Change Healthcare Holdings, LLC (UnitedHealth Group Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: Mckesson Financial Holdings Limited (McKesson Corp.)
• Inventors: Curran, Charles, D'Oench, Susannah
• Primary Examiner(s): VO, TRUONG V
• Application Number:
  US13/436,176
• Publication Number:
  US 20130262474A1
• Time in Patent Office: 865 Days
• Field of Search: 707/758
• US Class Current: 707/822
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 10/60 for patient-specific data, e.g. for electronic patient records
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 50/70 for mining of medical data, e.g. analysing previous cases of other patients

Abstract

An apparatus is provided for retrieving information associated with one or more patients. The apparatus includes at least one memory and at least one processor configured to receive queries from devices of health care systems. The queries include data requesting information associated with patients that corresponds to specified items of information indicated in the queries. The queries also indicate a predetermined threshold to determine whether the requested information corresponds to respective patients. The processor is further configured to analyze stored patient information to determine items of the patient information that correspond to the specified items of the information. The processor is further configured to detect a subset of the items of the patient information related to health data that is determined to correspond to a respective patient(s) based on a determined value that equals or exceeds the predetermined threshold. Corresponding computer program products and methods are also provided.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

receiving a query from a device associated with a health care system for health care information associated with a patient, the query comprising (a) one or more specified items of information associated with the patient, the specified items of information comprising demographic and clinical data associated with the patient, and (b) a predetermined threshold to be used to determine whether the requested information corresponds to the patient;

analyzing stored patient information received from a plurality of health care systems, the patient information comprising demographic and clinical data associated with a plurality of patients to identify items of the patient information that correspond to one or more of the specified items of information; and

detecting, via a processor, at least a subset of the items of patient information that is determined to correspond to the patient based in part on a determined value that equals or exceeds the predetermined threshold, wherein the determined value comprises a calculated score indicating a level of confidence that the subset of the items of patient information corresponds to the patient.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

enabling provision of one or more generated responses to the device comprising content indicating the patient and the items of patient information associated with a respective determined score indicating a confidence that the items of patient information correspond to the patient.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein prior to enabling provision, the method further comprises:

identifying one or more candidate items of the patient information; and

excluding the candidate items from the responses based in part on detecting that another determined value is below the predetermined threshold.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein detecting that the another determined value is below the predetermined threshold denotes that the subset of items of patient information does not correspond to the patient or signifies an unacceptable level of confidence that the subset of the items of patient information corresponds to the patient.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the determined value that equals or exceeds the predetermined threshold denotes that the subset of items of patient information corresponds to the patient or signifies an acceptable level of confidence that the subset of the items of patient information corresponds to the patient.

6. The method of claim 2, further comprising:

arranging the content of the responses in respective medical records to enable the device to display the records.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein prior to receiving the query the method further comprises:

receiving the patient information from one or more devices associated with the plurality of health care systems.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the clinical data comprises at least one of a medication, a health procedure, an allergy, a health problem, or a medical diagnosis of the patient.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the clinical data corresponds to a health condition of the patient.

10. An apparatus comprising:

at least one memory; and

at least one processor configured to cause the apparatus to;

receive a query from a device associated with a health care system for health care information associated with a patient, the query comprising (a) one or more specified items of information associated with the patient, the specified items of information comprising demographic and clinical data associated with the patient, and (b) a predetermined threshold to be used to determine whether the requested information corresponds to the patient;

analyze stored patient information received from a plurality of health care systems, the patient information comprising demographic and clinical data associated with a plurality of patients to identify items of the patient information that correspond to one or more of the specified items of information; and

detect at least a subset of the items of patient information that is determined to correspond to the patient based in part on a determined value that equals or exceeds the predetermined threshold, wherein the determined value comprises a calculated score indicating a level of confidence that the subset of the items of patient information corresponds to the patient.

11. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein the processor is further configured to cause the apparatus to:

enable provision of one or more generated responses to the device comprising content indicating the patient and the items of patient information associated with a respective determined score indicating a confidence that the items of patient information correspond to the patient.

12. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein prior to enable provision, the processor is further configured to cause the apparatus to:

identify one or more candidate items of the patient information; and

exclude the candidate items from the responses based in part on detecting that another determined value is below the predetermined threshold.

13. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein detecting that the another determined value is below the predetermined threshold denotes that the subset of items of patient information does not correspond to the patient or signifies an unacceptable level of confidence that the subset of the items of patient information corresponds to the patient.

14. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein the determined value that equals or exceeds the predetermined threshold denotes that the subset of items of patient information corresponds to the patient or signifies an acceptable level of confidence that the subset of the items of patient information corresponds to the patient.

15. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the processor is further configured to cause the apparatus to:

arrange the content of the responses in respective medical records to enable the device to display the records.

16. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein prior to receive the query the processor is further configured to cause the apparatus to:

receive the patient information from one or more devices associated with the plurality of health care systems.

17. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein the clinical data comprises at least one of a medication, a health procedure, an allergy, a health problem, or a medical diagnosis of the patient.

18. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein the clinical data corresponds to a health condition of the patient.

19. A computer program product comprising at least one non-transitory computer-readable storage medium having computer-executable program code instructions stored therein, the computer executable program code instructions comprising:

program code instructions configured to cause receipt of a query from a device associated with a health care system for health care information associated with a patient, the query comprising (a) one or more specified items of information associated with the patient, the specified items of information comprising demographic and clinical data associated with the patient, and (b) a predetermined threshold to be used to determine whether the requested information corresponds to the patient;

program code instructions configured to analyze stored patient information received from a plurality of health care systems, the patient information comprising demographic and clinical data associated with a plurality of patients to identify items of the patient information that correspond to one or more of the specified items of information; and

program code instructions configured to detect at least a subset of the items of patient information that is determined to correspond to the patient based in part on a determined value that equals or exceeds the predetermined threshold, wherein the determined value comprises a calculated score indicating a level of confidence that the subset of the items of patient information corresponds to the patient.

20. The computer program product of claim 19, further comprising:

program code instructions configured to enable provision of one or more generated responses to the device comprising content indicating the patient and the items of patient information associated with a respective determined score indicating a confidence that the items of patient information correspond to the patient.