Devices, Methods, and Systems for Acquiring Medical Diagnostic Information and Provision of Telehealth Services

Abstract

The invention relates generally to various systems, tools and methods for acquiring diagnostic information, including medical information, for a user, transmitting the information to a remote location, assessing the information, and transmitting resulting diagnosis and treatment information to the user and / or a third party for subsequent action. The present invention provides consumer and user-friendly telemedicine systems and procedures which enable health services and / or diagnosis to be provided at a distance remotely.

Description

[0001]This application claims the priority benefit of U.S. provisional patent application Ser. No. 62 / 160,468, filed on 12 May 2015 and incorporated herein in its entirety. This application also incorporates herein by reference in their entirety U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13 / 929,591, filed on Jun. 27, 2013, and U.S. provisional patent application Ser. No. 61 / 664,920, filed on 27 Jun. 2012.FIELD OF THE INVENTION[0002]The invention relates generally to various systems, tools and methods for acquiring diagnostic information, including medical information, for a user, transmitting the information to a remote location, assessing the information, and transmitting resulting diagnosis and treatment information to the user and / or a third party for subsequent action. More specifically, the present invention relates to consumer and user-friendly telemedicine systems and procedures which enable health services and / or diagnoses to be provided remotely.BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION[0003]Curre...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

The patent is about creating devices that can be used by non-medical personnel to collect information about a person's condition. This information can be transmitted to medical professionals for assessment and treatment purposes. The device can be connected to electronic communication systems like phones and computers. It is designed to be applied to different parts of the person's body, like the ear, nose, throat, eye, wrist, or mouth. This helps gather accurate medical information.

Problems solved by technology

If the subject is a small child, or if the condition is thought to be serious or in need of immediate treatment, the long waiting periods for a physician appointment may seem unreasonable or unacceptable, and the subject often ends up going to an emergency room and / or urgent care center on a “walk-in” basis.

In many cases, the waiting period at the facility can consume many hours, depending upon facility capacity and other subject needs (e.g., emergency cases treated as priority, etc.).

Ultimately, the subject's visit may have been unnecessary, as the condition was not truly “urgent” or “critical,” and thus treatment could have been delayed and / or accommodated at a regularly scheduled appointment, or the condition would have resolved itself with little or no intervention by the physician.

In many cases, the stress and uncertainty associated with the subject's condition can be more debilitating than the condition itself, especially where the subject is a small child, and the caregiver is an inexperienced parent who is anxious about his or her child's condition.

Moreover, because emergency treatment centers such as emergency rooms and urgent care centers are operating at or over capacity, the long wait times at such facilities can further exacerbate stress, leading to a wide variety of potential medical situations including hypertension, heart attacks and / or strokes, as well as possible physical and / or mental altercations between subjects and / or caregivers.

Moreover, the unnecessary use of emergency and urgent care facilities levies a heavy cost on the nation's health care and health care insurance systems, as such services are generally much more expensive than similar services provided on a scheduled or appointed basis.

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