Method and apparatus for tracking and maintaining emergency equipment

• US 9,619,767 B2
• Filed: 10/16/2014
• Issued: 04/11/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 10/18/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Emergency University, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Emergency University, Inc.
• Inventors: Braun, Odelia
• Primary Examiner(s): Palavecino, Kathleen
• Assistant Examiner(s): WHITAKER, ANDREW B
• Application Number:
  US14/516,178
• Publication Number:
  US 20150112704A1
• Time in Patent Office: 908 Days
• Field of Search: 705325
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/3904 External heart defibrillators [EHD]
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/3993 User interfaces for automatic external defibrillators
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/00 Administration; Management
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/0631 Resource planning, allocation, distributing or scheduling for enterprises or organisations
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/087 Inventory or stock management, e.g. order filling, procurement or balancing against orders
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/10 Office automation; Time management
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/20 Administration of product repair or maintenance
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/265 Personal security, identity or safety
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 40/20 for the management or administration of healthcare resources or facilities, e.g. managing hospital staff or surgery rooms
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 40/40 for the management of medical equipment or devices, e.g. scheduling maintenance or upgrades

Abstract

Embodiments of the invention provide a uniquely accountable mechanism to provide emergency responders with accurate and verifiable data regarding the location and operational readiness of emergency equipment immediately upon notification of an emergency. The invention tracks, records, and establishes workflows to maintain emergency medical equipment, such as automated external defibrillators (AEDs), by non-technical, non-healthcare providers for use by emergency responders in pre-hospital, pre-EMS medical emergencies. The unique and verifiable data obtained from this process is used as part of an emergency notification system that provides emergency responders, such as sudden cardiac arrest (SCA) responders, in an organizational setting, with immediate and accurate information identifying the nearest operationally ready medical device at the time of the emergency, which information has heretofore never been available to emergency responders such as SCA responders.

Claims

1. A computer implemented method for establishing and maintaining an emergency services management system, comprising:

providing a processor-implemented mobile app in communication with said emergency services management system;

said mobile app performing the steps of;

tracking emergency medical equipment located within a facility comprising a given site, said emergency medical equipment comprising equipment provided for use in pre-hospital, pre-EMS medical emergencies;

tracking said emergency medical equipment operational status,

informing users of said operational status,

receiving maintenance results from said users regarding said emergency medical equipment, and

communicating said maintenance results back to said emergency services management system to confirm on a regular basis that said emergency medical equipment is physically inspected and properly maintained;

said mobile app in communication with a processor-implemented emergency notification application;

said mobile app automatically linking information regarding emergency medical equipment location, maintenance results, and operational status to said emergency notification application;

said emergency notification application receiving said information regarding emergency medical equipment location, maintenance results, and operational status;

said emergency notification application receiving an input signal comprising an initial notification transmitted by a bystander at an emergency within said facility and indicating that there is an emergency;

said emergency notification application receiving said input signal and extracting therefrom content from said bystander comprising identification of a specific location of said emergency and identification of said emergency type;

said emergency notification application automatically selecting laypersons comprising individuals who are regularly present within said facility in a capacity unrelated to emergency medical response and who are trained as responders and said emergency notification application automatically selecting emergency medical equipment within said facility, said selecting of responders and emergency medical equipment based on the type of emergency, the role of the responder, the quality of said responders'"'"' training and preparation, actions specified by an organization'"'"'s emergency response plan, proximity to the emergency, and an operationally/clinically appropriate period of response time;

said emergency notification application automatically selecting both a nearest responder proximate to said emergency medical equipment, and said emergency equipment, based upon known clinical outcomes of a particular emergency type in view of a response time determined by calculating a time equivalent distance between the bystander and the responder and by calculating the time equivalent distance between the bystander and the emergency medical equipment, wherein the distance for the responder to retrieve the emergency medical equipment must be less than a pre-determined maximum time allowed for the response, if the response is to be clinically efficacious, and wherein responders who do not meet the time equivalent distance criteria are not selected; and

during an emergency, said emergency notification application automatically generating a prioritized alert signal for transmission directly to said selected responders, said alert signal comprising said emergency type and said emergency location, and said alert notifying said responders of the location of the nearest operational emergency medical equipment.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

providing a database, maintained by said emergency services management system, containing information for emergency medical equipment for at least one given site, said information comprising serial number, model name, location, expiration date, quantity, and maintenance status.

3. The method of claim 2, further comprising:

said database storing characteristics of one or more of medical equipment, parts, supplies, medications, and non-medical equipment and/or parts and/or supplies.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

associating a provider-supplied, electronically scannable label having associated readable text with said emergency medical equipment in connection with its use at said site.

5. The method of claim 4, further comprising:

a device associated with said mobile app for scanning said label to proceed with maintenance of, or be apprised of any anomalies with, a given piece of emergency medical equipment.

6. The method of claim 4, wherein said label comprises:

provider name;

model;

serial number; and

expiration date.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

providing a master product list for registering one or more complex kits by selection therefrom.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

displaying a list of emergency medical equipment at a site with location and status for each piece of equipment on said list;

providing access to a scanning device when a user selects a piece of emergency medical equipment on said list;

using said scanning device for automatically scanning an electronic label associated with said selected piece of emergency medical equipment;

if said scan is successful, displaying a maintenance checklist and a list of instructions specific to said selected piece of emergency medical equipment; and

communicating maintenance results to said emergency services provider.

9. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

registering a user for a maintenance app;

said app communicating with a program management database and verifying that said user is an authorized coordinator for a facility based on said user'"'"'s first name, last name, email address, and mobile phone number maintained in said program management database;

said app communicating with a server and requesting a list of facility specific emergency medical equipment based on registration data previously entered and verified in said program management database;

said server communicating with said app and requesting a list of facility specific emergency medical equipment from an emergency medical equipment maintenance database;

providing an emergency medical equipment list when said user is an authorized coordinator; and

requesting more information when said user is not an authorized coordinator.

10. The method of claim 9, further comprising:

said user selecting emergency medical equipment from said list;

said app using a scanning device to scan an electronic label on the emergency medical equipment;

said app processing said label and extracting data imbedded therein;

said app comparing said data with the emergency medical equipment selected from the list;

said app populating an inspection checklist based on the emergency medical equipment manufacturer'"'"'s recommendations for the selected emergency medical equipment make and model when the label data matches the emergency medical equipment data stored in the program management database for the selected emergency medical equipment; and

presenting an error message when the label data does not match the selected emergency medical equipment.

11. The method of claim 10, further comprising:

said app capturing a geo-location of said authorized coordinator when said label is scanned; and

said app reporting said geo-location to said program management database.

12. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

said mobile app and said emergency notification application sharing the same database.

13. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

based on the geo-location of an emergency requiring the use of emergency medical equipment, the geo-location of a facility at which said emergency medical equipment is located, and the operational status recorded for each piece of emergency medical equipment, a program management database determining the location of the emergency medical equipment that is nearest to the location of the emergency, and prioritizing said emergency medical equipment on the basis of operational status.

14. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

said app capturing a geo-location of each piece of emergency medical equipment; and

storing said geo-location in a program management database when the emergency medical equipment is placed into service.

15. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

responsive to said user completing and submitting an emergency medical equipment inspection report, a program management database prioritizing readiness of the emergency medical equipment into categories of;

Operational;

Alert pending;

or Not in service; and

maintaining said information along with the geo-location of the emergency medical equipment.

16. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

said app communicating with a maintenance database; and

sending a notification of a maintenance issue to one or more responsible parties.

17. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

a user'"'"'s organization pre-authorizing a user to perform an inspection.

18. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

maintaining a local cache of data on a mobile device of an authorized user for authorized emergency medical equipment.

19. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

on a periodic basis, a program management system sending an email notification and/or a text notification to an emergency medical equipment coordinator to complete required emergency medical equipment maintenance.

20. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

said app verifying that an emergency medical equipment coordinator is physically present at the emergency medical equipment location by requiring a responsible party to scan an electronic label that has been placed on or near the emergency medical equipment.

21. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

said app communicating status and requirements with other departments or personnel involved in an organization'"'"'s emergency medical equipment management program.

22. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

selecting emergency medical equipment based on the type of emergency, the role of the responder, the actions specified by an organization'"'"'s emergency response plan, and as assessed by a rules engine as to the emergency medical equipment'"'"'s operational status; and

further selecting said emergency medical equipment based on its proximity to the emergency and a particular emergency responder who has acknowledged that he is responding.

23. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

determining emergency medical equipment operational status by preconfigured rules to ensure that a responder is not directed to equipment that has not been confirmed as being in a specific location, or that has not been recently inspected, or that has expired accessories, or that has been determined to have an issue pending resolution.

24. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

tracking the return of non-operational equipment to operational status.

25. An apparatus for establishing and maintaining an emergency services management system, comprising:

a mobile app in communications with an emergency services management system;

said mobile app performing the processor-implemented steps of;

tracking emergency medical equipment located within a facility comprising a given site, said emergency medical equipment comprising equipment provided for use in pre-hospital, pre-EMS medical emergencies;

tracking said emergency medical equipment status,

informing users of said status,

receiving maintenance results from said users regarding said emergency medical equipment, and

communicating said maintenance results back to said emergency services provider to confirm on a regular basis that said emergency medical equipment is physically inspected and properly maintained;

said mobile app in communication with a processor-implemented emergency notification application;

said mobile app further performing the processor-implemented step of automatically linking information regarding emergency medical equipment location, maintenance results, and operational status to said processor-implemented emergency notification application;

said emergency notification application receiving said information regarding emergency medical equipment location, maintenance results, and operational status;

said emergency notification application receiving an input signal comprising an initial notification transmitted by a bystander at an emergency within said facility and indicating that there is an emergency;

said emergency notification application receiving said input signal and extracting therefrom content from said bystander comprising identification of a specific location of said emergency and identification of said emergency type;

said emergency notification application automatically selecting laypersons comprising individuals who are regularly present within said facility in a capacity unrelated to emergency medical response and who are trained as responders and said emergency notification application automatically selecting emergency medical equipment within said facility, said selecting of responders and emergency medical equipment based on the type of emergency, the role of the responder, the quality of said responders'"'"' training and preparation, actions specified by an organization'"'"'s emergency response plan, proximity to the emergency, and an operationally/clinically appropriate period of response time;

said emergency notification application automatically selecting both a nearest responder proximate to said emergency medical equipment, and said emergency equipment, based upon known clinical outcomes of a particular emergency type in view of a response time determined by calculating a time equivalent distance between the bystander and the responder and by calculating the time equivalent distance between the bystander and the emergency medical equipment, wherein the distance for the responder to retrieve the emergency medical equipment must be less than a pre-determined maximum time allowed for the response, if the response is to be clinically efficacious, and wherein responders who do not meet the time equivalent distance criteria are not selected; and

during an emergency, said emergency notification application automatically generating a prioritized alert signal for transmission directly to said selected responders, said alert signal comprising said emergency type and said emergency location, and said alert notifying said responders of the location of the nearest operational emergency medical equipment.