SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR GENERATING A MEDICATION INVENTORY

• US 20130117044A1
• Filed: 12/09/2011
• Published: 05/09/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 11/05/2011
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Medsleuth Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Medsleuth Incorporated
• Inventors: Kalamas, James
• Application Number:
  US13/316,183
• Publication Number:
  US 20130117044A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/3
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/087 Inventory or stock management, e.g. order filling, procurement or balancing against orders
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/08 Auctions
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 20/13 delivered from dispensers

Abstract

A system and method for electronically verifying a patient'"'"'s medication inventory comprises receiving an optical image of a medication label on a pill bottle or other medication container, translating said image into text data (e.g., comprising patient'"'"'s name, medication name, dose, frequency and route of administration of medication); comparing the text data to known medications in a medication database and identifying any identical match. If no match is found, the system and method acts as an expert system to search the data in the medication database for historical user verified closest matches and to return the closest match with the highest user verified historical probability of being correct. The matched information is displayed to a user and the user is enabled to correct the information, if needed. The verified information is stored in a medication database.

Claims

1. A computer implemented method for generating a medication inventory for a user, comprising:

receiving an optical image of a medication label;

translating the optical image into computer readable text data;

comparing the text data to known medications stored in a first database and identifying any identical match and, if no identical match is found, identifying the closest match;

displaying the matched medication to the user;

enabling the user to indicate whether the medication is correct;

where the user indicates the medication is not correct, enabling the user to input the correct medication; and

storing the verified medication in a medication inventory database.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

comparing the text data to known dosages for the verified medication stored in said first database and identifying any identical match, and, if no identical match is found, identifying the closest match;

displaying the matched dosage to the user;

enabling the user to indicate whether the dosage is correct; and

where the user indicates the dosage is not correct, enabling the user to input the correct dosage; and

storing the verified dosage in said medication inventory database.

3. The method of claim 2, further comprising:

comparing the text data to known medication frequencies for the verified medication stored in said first database and identifying any identical match, and, if no identical match is found, identifying the closest match;

displaying the matched medication frequency to the user;

enabling the user to indicate whether the medication frequency is correct; and

where the user indicates the medication frequency is not correct, enabling the user to input the correct medication frequency; and

storing the verified medication frequency in said medication inventory database.

4. The method of claim 3, further comprising:

comparing the text data to known medication routes of administration for the verified medication stored in said first database and identifying any identical match, and, if no identical match is found, identifying the closest match;

displaying the matched medication route of administration to the user;

enabling the user to indicate whether the medication route of administration is correct; and

where the user indicates the medication route of administration is not correct, enabling the user to input the correct medication route of administration; and

storing the verified medication route of administration in said medication inventory database.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the displaying to the user of the matched medication, dosage, medication frequency, and route of administration comprises the display of this data along with the display of the received optical image on a single computer screen accessible to the user.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the data in said medication inventory database is password protected.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the data in said medication inventory database is accessible remotely via a computer network.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the data in said medication inventory database is used to generate an electronic medical record.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the optical image is translated into computer readable text data using optical character recognition software.

10. The method of claim 1, further comprising identifying a patient'"'"'s name on the medication label and storing the name in said medication inventory database.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the displaying of a matched medication to the user further comprises the displaying of the received optical image on a computer screen together with the matched medication.

12. The method of claim 1, further comprising a second database for storing demographic and medication label data for the patient and historical user verified closest matches for other patients obtained using the system;

and wherein the identifying of the closest match includes searching the data in said second database and identifying the closest match having the highest probability of being correct based on said historical user verified closest matches.

13. A system for generating a medication inventory for a patient, comprising:

an optical scanner for capturing a human readable image of a medication label;

a first database for storing a library of known medications;

a data processor operative to receive said image, to convert said image into searchable text data, and to compare said text data with the medications in said first database to identify the medication that most closely matches the text data; and

a user interface for displaying to a user the matched medication and for enabling the user to verify that the matched medication is correct and to input the correct medication name if the matched medication is incorrect.

14. The system of claim 13, further comprising:

a second database for storing demographic and medication label data for the patient and historical user verified closest matches for other patients obtained using the system; and

wherein the data processor comprises an expert system including machine learning capabilities operative to search the data in said second database and to identify the closest match having the highest probability of being correct based on said historical user verified closest matches.

15. The system of claim 13, further comprising a bi-directional communication device for enabling information to be sent to the system from a remote user and for enabling information to be obtained from the system by the remote user.

16. The system of claim 13, wherein said first database further includes storing one or more additional data fields for each medication in said first database, including data fields containing one or more of known dosages, routes of administration, and frequencies of administration, wherein said data processor is operative to compare said text data with the data in said data fields in said first database and to identify the one or more matched data fields that most closely matches the text data, and wherein said user interface displays to the user said one or more matched data fields for verification by the user.