Method for programming a patient care device

• US 8,639,521 B2
• Filed: 12/23/2005
• Issued: 01/28/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 03/13/1995
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Carefusion 303 Incorporated (Becton, Dickinson & Co)
• Original Assignee: Carefusion 303 Incorporated (Becton, Dickinson & Co)
• Inventors: Eggers, Philip N., Schlotterbeck, David L., Vanderveen, Timothy W., Coffman, Damon J.
• Primary Examiner(s): Cobanoglu, Dilek B
• Application Number:
  US11/318,412
• Publication Number:
  US 20060106649A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,958 Days
• Field of Search: 235/375, 604/65, 604/111, 604/66, 604/60, 379/93.09, 707/104.1, 600/301, 700/214, 714/724
• US Class Current: 705/2
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/031 Intracranial pressure
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/411 Detecting or monitoring allergy or intolerance reactions to an allergenic agent or substance
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/417 the bone marrow
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 2205/6054 Magnetic identification systems
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 5/1413 Modular systems comprising interconnecting elements
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 5/16827 controlling delivery of multiple fluids, e.g. sequencing, mixing or via separate flow-paths infusion of multiple fluids without using a controller A61M5/1407
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 5/172 electrical or electronic A61M5/16804, A61M5/16831 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 10/60 for patient-specific data, e.g. for electronic patient records
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 20/17 delivered via infusion or injection
• 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
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 40/67 for remote operation
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 70/20 relating to practices or guidelines
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 13/641 by indicating incorrect coupling; by indicating correct or full engagement
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 13/7038 making use of a remote controlled switch, e.g. relais, solid state switch activated by the engagement of the coupling parts
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 2201/12 for medicine and surgery

Abstract

The present invention is directed to a system and method for providing care to a patient, comprising a patient care device having a number of configuration databases stored in a memory in the device. Each configuration database preferably includes protocols, operating limits, rule sets and/or operating features that collectively define an operating environment, or personality, of the device. Selection of a specific configuration database preferably is based at least in part upon patient-specific information obtained from any location in a distributed hospital network. Examples of such patient-specific information include patient age or size, patient medical characteristics, a location of the patient or a location of the care device. In a preferred embodiment, programming a patient care device to deliver a drug to a patient entails activating a configuration database and scanning a machine-readable drug label identifying a particular protocol stored in the activated database. The selected protocol includes default parameters for delivering the drug, and the label optionally includes instructions for deviating from the default protocol.

Claims

1. A method of programming a patient care device to deliver a substance to a patient, comprising:

printing a coded label, said label including a substance delivery protocol identifier;

attaching the label to a container holding the substance;

transporting the container to the patient care device;

entering the protocol identifier into the patient care device;

selecting a configuration database from a plurality of configuration databases stored in a memory in the patient care device, wherein the selection depends on one of a location of the patient, a disease state of the patient or an identity of a user of the patient care device;

retrieving from the selected configuration database stored in the memory in the patient care device a specific protocol identified by the protocol identifier, said specific protocol comprising a plurality of delivery parameters and default values;

programming the patient care device to deliver the substance to the patient in accordance with the specific protocol.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the selected configuration database further includes additional information defining an operating environment for the device, said information comprising any of a protocol, a rule set, a device operating limit or a device operating feature.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein selecting the configuration database comprises transferring patient-specific information to said patient care device to enable selection of the configuration database from said plurality of configuration databases based at least in part on said patient-specific information.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein transferring of said patient-specific information comprises entering the patient-specific information into the patient care device using a coded data input device or a network connection.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein said entering step comprises scanning the coded label with a coded data input device operatively connected to said patient care system.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the data input device is a bar code reader.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the coded label further includes a value representing a deviation from the specific protocol, such that the programming step includes programming the patient care device to deliver the substance to the patient in accordance with the deviation from the specific protocol.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the coded label further includes supplementary information, said information including a patient identifier, a deviation from the first protocol and a scheduled time to begin delivery of the substance to the patient.

9. The method of claim 8, further comprising:

scanning a patient identification code attached to the patient;

confirming that the patient identifier on the container label corresponds to the patient identification code; and

entering the supplementary information from said coded label,

wherein the step of programming the patient care device comprises programming the patient care device to deliver the substance to the patient in accordance with the deviation from the specific protocol at the scheduled delivery time.

10. The method of claim 9, further comprising scanning a provider identification code.