Association of support surfaces and beds

• US 9,465,915 B2
• Filed: 12/06/2013
• Issued: 10/11/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 08/29/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Hill-Rom Services Incorporated (Baxter International Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Hill-Rom Services Incorporated (Baxter International Inc.)
• Inventors: McNeely, Craig A., Riley, Carl W., Huster, Keith A., Vanderpohl, Irvin J. III, Glidwell, Patricia A., Ferguson, David C., Zhao, Simeon, Bhatia, Daleep
• Primary Examiner(s): Swarthout, Brent
• Application Number:
  US14/098,704
• Publication Number:
  US 20140095197A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,040 Days
• Field of Search: 340/286.07, 340/539.12, 340/573.1, 705/2
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: A61G 12/00 Accommodation for nursing, e.g. in hospitals, not covered by groups A61G1/00 - A61G11/00, e.g. trolleys for transport of medicaments or food service or tea-tables, trolleys or wagons A47B31/00; Prescription lists
• CPC Class Codes: A61G 7/018 Control or drive mechanisms
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/22 Social work or social welfare, e.g. community support activities or counselling services
• 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 40/63 for local operation
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 40/67 for remote operation

Abstract

Systems, methods, beds, supports surfaces and machine readable medium for associating beds and support surface of a healthcare facility are disclosed. A surface association system for a healthcare facility may comprise a plurality of beds. The system may further comprise a computing device and a plurality of support surfaces to be placed upon beds of the plurality of beds. The computing device may associate a support surface of the plurality of support surfaces with a bed of the plurality of beds. The computing device may make the association based upon status data received from the plurality of beds and the plurality of support surfaces. The support surface and/or bed to be associated may initiate a surface association request. The computing device, in response to the surface association request, may request performance of one or more actions on the bed and/or support surface to be associated to identify the bed and/or support surface from the beds and support surfaces of the healthcare facility.

Claims

1. A system for use in a healthcare facility having a network, the system comprising

a plurality of beds located throughout the healthcare facility at a plurality of locations, each bed of the plurality of beds being configured to transmit a bed ID over the network, and

a remote computer coupled to the network and configured to receive the bed ID from each bed of the plurality of beds, the remote computer generating a first menu that is shown on a display of the remote computer and that lists first information identifying each of the beds that are located at the plurality of locations, the remote computer generating a second menu that is shown on the display and that lists second information identifying the locations, the remote computer being configured to permit a user to select one of the beds from the first menu and one of the locations from the second menu, the remote computer displaying an associate field that is selected after one of the beds from the first menu is selected and after one of the locations from the second menu is selected such that, in response to the selection of the associate field, the bed selected from the first menu is associated in a database of the remote computer with the location selected from the second menu.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein a selected bed box appears on the display adjacent the first menu and the bed selected from first menu has its information displayed in the selected bed box and wherein a selected location box appears on the display adjacent the second menu and the location selected from the second menu has its information displayed in the selected location box.

3. The system of claim 2, wherein the selected bed box appears on the display beneath the first menu and the selected location box appears on the display beneath the second menu.

4. The system of claim 3, wherein the associate field appears on the display between the selected bed box and the selected location box.

5. The system of claim 4, wherein a completed associations box appears on the display and includes a bed-to-location associations menu that lists information indicative of bed-to-location associations that have been made using the remote computer.

6. The system of claim 5, wherein the completed associations box appears on the display beneath the selected bed box, the association field, and the selected locations box.

7. The system of claim 5, wherein the remote computer is configured to permit a user to select a line item from the bed-to-location associations menu, the remote computer displaying an unassociate field that is selected after the line item from the bed-to-location associations menu is selected and, in response to the selection of the unassociate field, the bed and the location of the line item are no longer associated in the database of the remote computer.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein a completed associations box appears on the display and includes a bed-to-location associations menu that lists information indicative of bed-to-room associations that have been made using the remote computer.

9. The system of claim 8, wherein the completed associations box appears on the display beneath the first and second menus.

10. The system of claim 8, wherein the remote computer is configured to permit a user to select a line item from the bed-to-location associations menu, the remote computer displaying an unassociate field that is selected after the line item from the bed-to-location associations menu is selected and, in response to the selection of the unassociate field, the bed and the location of the line item are no longer associated in the database of the remote computer.

11. The system of claim 1, further comprising a plurality of surfaces located throughout the healthcare facility at the plurality of locations, each surface of the plurality of surfaces being configured to transmit a surface ID over the network, the remote computer being configured to receive the surface ID from each bed of the plurality of surfaces, the remote computer generating a third menu that is shown on the display of the remote computer and that lists third information identifying each of the surfaces that are located at the plurality of locations, the remote computer being configured to permit a user to select one of the surfaces from the third menu so that after one of the beds from the first menu is selected, after one of the locations from the second menu is selected, and after one of the surfaces from the third menu is selected, and then in response to selection of the association field, the bed selected from the first menu, the location selected from the second menu and the surface selected from the third menu are all associated in the database of the remote computer with each other.

12. The system of claim 11, wherein a selected bed box appears on the display adjacent the first menu and the bed selected from first menu has its information displayed in the selected bed box, wherein a selected location box appears on the display adjacent the second menu and the location selected from the second menu has its information displayed in the selected location box, and wherein a selected surface box appears on the display adjacent the third menu and the surface selected from the third menu has its information displayed in the selected surface box.

13. The system of claim 12, wherein the selected bed box appears on the display beneath the first menu, the selected location box appears on the display beneath the second menu, and the selected surfaces box appears on the display beneath the third menu.

14. The system of claim 13, wherein the selected bed box, the selected location box, and the selected surface box are aligned in a horizontal row on the display and the associate field appears on the display below the selected bed box, the selected location box, and the selected surface box.

15. The system of claim 14, wherein a completed associations box appears on the display and includes a bed-to-surface-to-location associations menu that lists information indicative of bed-to-surface-to-location associations that have been made using the remote computer.

16. The system of claim 15, wherein the completed associations box appears on the display beneath the selected bed box, the selected surface box, the selected locations box, and the associate field.

17. The system of claim 15, wherein the remote computer is configured to permit a user to select a line item from the bed-to-surface-to-location associations menu, the remote computer displaying an unassociate field that is selected after the line item from the bed-to-surface-to-location associations menu is selected and, in response to the selection of the unassociate field, the bed, the surface and the location of the line item are no longer associated in the database of the remote computer.

18. A system for use in a healthcare facility having a network, the system comprising

a plurality of surfaces located throughout the healthcare facility at a plurality of locations, each surface of the plurality of surfaces being configured to transmit a surface ID over the network, and

a remote computer coupled to the network and configured to receive the surface ID from each surface of the plurality of surfaces, the remote computer generating a first menu that is shown on a display of the remote computer and that lists first information identifying each of the surfaces that are located at the plurality of locations, the remote computer generating a second menu that is shown on the display and that lists second information identifying the locations, the remote computer being configured to permit a user to select one of the surfaces from the first menu and one of the locations from the second menu, the remote computer displaying an associate field that is selected after one of the surfaces from the first menu is selected and after one of the locations from the second menu is selected such that, in response to the selection of the associate field, the surface selected from the first menu is associated in a database of the remote computer with the location selected from the second menu.

19. A system for use in a healthcare facility having a network, the system comprising

a plurality of beds located throughout the healthcare facility at a plurality of locations, each bed of the plurality of beds being configured to transmit a bed ID over the network,

a plurality of surfaces located throughout the healthcare facility at the plurality of locations, each surface of the plurality of surfaces being configured to transmit a surface ID over the network, and

a remote computer coupled to the network and configured to receive the bed ID from each bed of the plurality of beds and the surface ID from each of the plurality of surfaces, the remote computer generating a first menu that is shown on a display of the remote computer and that lists first information identifying each of the beds that are located at the plurality of locations, the remote computer generating a second menu that is shown on the display and that lists second information identifying each of the surfaces that are located at the plurality of locations, the remote computer being configured to permit a user to select one of the beds from the first menu and one of the surfaces from the second menu, the remote computer displaying an associate field that is selected after one of the beds from the first menu is selected and after one of the surfaces from the second menu is selected such that, in response to the selection of the associate field, the bed selected from the first menu is associated in a database of the remote computer with the surface selected from the second menu.