Veterinarian proposal device, veterinarian proposal system, veterinarian proposal method and program

Abstract

To provide a veterinarian proposal device for reducing burdens of both veterinarian and animal owner with a simple method, and proposing a veterinarian and an animal hospital suitable for a treatment of animal patients, a veterinarian proposal system, a veterinarian proposal method and a program.SOLUTION: A veterinarian proposal device comprises: a medical specialist database part 11 storing veterinarian information classified by a specialty of the veterinarian; a medical specialist proposal part 13 for selecting one or two or more medical specialists suitable for treatment of an animal patient from the medical specialist database part 11, on the basis of a disease name, an inspection item or a medical care content input from an external terminal; and a reservation part 14 for performing reservation of medical care to the medical specialist(s) selected by the medical specialist proposal part 13, by using the veterinarian proposal device 1, the medical specialist(s) is proposed to a an animal owner or a veterinarian who performed a primary medical care.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an apparatus, system, method, and program for suggesting veterinarians, and more particularly to a system and method for suggesting specialists to owners and their family doctors (including veterinarians who have performed primary care). [Background technology]

[0002] Pets such as dogs, cats, and rabbits, and livestock such as cows and pigs, are irreplaceable to humans. In particular, in recent years, the number of households that keep multiple pets and households that keep different breeds of pets at the same time, such as dogs and cats, has been increasing. In addition, health awareness regarding pets has increased, and the average lifespan of pets has increased significantly, so pets are more likely to suffer from some kind of disease during their lifetime. Furthermore, because pets have a shorter lifespan than humans, the number of households that welcome new pets into their homes when their pets die is also increasing.

[0003] On the other hand, this pet boom is putting an increasing strain on veterinary medical workers. Unlike human medical care, veterinary hospitals are general medical facilities that treat all medical specialties. As a result, there are few hospitals that have specialists in each medical specialty or that are equipped with the medical equipment necessary for disease testing. Furthermore, animals are prone to different diseases depending on their species and breed, and there are a wide variety of treatments, so there are hospitals where only one veterinarian handles all cases. Therefore, while the need for veterinary hospitals is increasing, the burden on veterinary medical workers is also increasing, which is an issue.

[0004] In response to this situation, insurance companies and other companies are recommending veterinarians and animal hospitals that specialize in specific breeds and diseases to pet owners, and animal hospitals are also making efforts to demonstrate their expertise on their websites, but they are still unable to fully communicate the current state of veterinary care to pet owners. Even if a pet's regular doctor writes a referral letter to another veterinarian, the veterinarian who received the referral will be seeing the animal for the first time and will have to treat the animal from scratch. Furthermore, pet owners are burdened by having to make a new appointment and explain the symptoms of the animal patient to the veterinarian.

[0005] Therefore, systems and methods have been proposed to reduce the burden on both veterinarians and pet owners, and to suggest to pet owners veterinarians or animal hospitals that are suitable for treating and examining diseases suffered by pet animals (see, for example, Patent Documents 1 to 3).

[0006] Patent Document 1 discloses an electronic medical record system for animals that allows the sharing of medical record information among animal hospitals managed by a group, and that allows veterinarians to be given viewing or editing rights according to the animal species they specialize in. Patent Document 2 discloses a system that suggests examination candidates for animal patients. Patent Document 3 discloses a veterinarian collaboration system that includes an animal symptom database section, a symptom organ database section, a specialized veterinarian database section, a symptom filtering section, an organ filtering section, and a veterinarian filtering section, and provides veterinarian information suitable for the user. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0007] [Patent Document 1] International Publication No. 2021 / 199248 [Patent Document 2] International Publication No. 2021 / 191985 [Patent Document 3] JP 2006-215967 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0008] However, the above-mentioned conventional technology has the following problems: Veterinary clinics must treat not only various animal species such as dogs, cats, and rabbits, but also various diseases of the eyes, skin, digestive system, etc. Therefore, when multiple animal clinics cooperate to provide medical care by sharing medical record information, as in the system described in Patent Document 1, there is a high possibility that inconvenience will occur if viewing rights or editing rights are set according to the animal species in which veterinarians specialize.

[0009] As mentioned above, in veterinary medicine, there are few hospitals that have specialists for each medical department or that have the medical equipment required for disease testing. Therefore, even if a candidate test is proposed, as in the system described in Patent Document 2, it is necessary to transport the animal patient to a hospital that can perform the test. Even if a hospital has the medical equipment to perform the test, if the disease is not the specialty of the veterinarian performing the test, there are cases where the hospital cannot provide prompt treatment.

[0010] Furthermore, the veterinarian collaboration system described in Patent Document 3 only provides information related to the speciality of treatment, and does not provide information regarding appointments. This means that even if a veterinarian suitable for treatment is found, it is not possible to smoothly schedule an appointment.

[0011] Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide an apparatus, system, method, and program that suggests veterinarians and animal hospitals suitable for treating animal patients while reducing the burden on both veterinarians and owners.

[0012] The veterinarian suggestion device of the present invention comprises a specialist database unit storing veterinarian information classified by specialty, a specialist suggestion unit selecting one or more specialists suitable for treating an animal patient from the specialist database unit based on a disease name, test items, or medical treatment details input from an external terminal, and a reservation unit making an appointment for treatment with the specialist selected by the specialist suggestion unit. The specialist database unit may classify veterinarians at least according to the species or breed of animals they specialize in, the medical specialty they specialize in, and the items they can examine. The reservation unit can determine a consultation date and time based on the owner's desired reservation date and time input from an external terminal and the available dates and times provided by the specialist selected by the specialist suggestion unit. The veterinarian suggestion device of the present invention may further include a re-suggestion section that selects a specialist other than the specialist selected in the specialist suggestion section from the specialist database section when the specialist's available date and time does not match the owner's desired appointment date and time. The specialist suggestion unit can select a specialist according to a preset priority order. In addition, after a consultation appointment with a specialist has been completed, the reservation unit may perform at least one of the following: providing animal patient information to the specialist, providing information regarding the urgency of symptoms to the specialist, arranging for an on-site consultation by the specialist, and reserving transportation of the animal patient.

[0013] A veterinarian suggestion system according to the present invention includes the veterinarian suggestion device described above. Another veterinarian recommendation system according to the present invention includes a veterinarian recommendation device that includes at least a specialist database server storing veterinarian information classified by specialty, a specialist recommendation unit that selects one or more specialists suitable for treating an animal patient from the specialist database server based on a disease name, test items, or medical treatment details input from an external terminal, and a reservation unit that makes an appointment for treatment with the specialist selected by the specialist recommendation unit.

[0014] The veterinarian suggestion method of the present invention is a method for suggesting specialists to an owner and / or a veterinarian who has provided primary care, using one or more veterinarian suggestion devices, and includes a specialist suggestion process in which the veterinarian suggestion device selects one or more specialists suitable for treating the animal patient from a specialist database storing veterinarian information classified by specialty based on the disease name, test items, or medical treatment details input from an external terminal, and a reservation process in which a medical appointment is made with the specialist selected by the specialist suggestion process. In addition, the veterinarian suggestion method of the present invention may include an appointment date and time adjustment step of comparing the available date and time of the specialist selected in the specialist suggestion step with the owner's desired appointment date and time to determine whether there is a matching date and time, and if there is a matching date and time, the appointment step is performed, and if there is no matching date and time, a re-suggestion step is performed to select a specialist other than the specialist selected in the specialist suggestion step from the specialist database.

[0015] The program of the present invention is a program that suggests specialists to the owner and / or the veterinarian who has provided primary care, and causes a computer to execute a specialist suggestion function that selects one or more specialists suitable for treating the animal patient from a specialist database that stores veterinarian information classified by specialty based on the disease name, test items, or treatment details input from an external terminal, and a reservation function that makes an appointment for treatment with the specialist selected by the specialist suggestion function. Effect of the Invention

[0016] According to the present invention, the burden on both veterinarians and owners of animal patients can be reduced, and a veterinarian suitable for treating or examining an animal patient can be suggested. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0017] [Figure 1] 1 is a conceptual diagram showing an example of the configuration of a veterinarian suggestion device according to a first embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 2] 2 is a flowchart showing a method for suggesting a veterinarian using the veterinarian suggestion device 1 shown in FIG. 1. [Diagram 3] FIG. 2 is a conceptual diagram showing an example of the configuration of a veterinarian suggestion device according to a modified example of the first embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 4] 4 is a flowchart showing a method for suggesting a veterinarian using the veterinarian suggestion device 2 shown in FIG. 3. [Diagram 5] FIG. 11 is a conceptual diagram showing a configuration example of a veterinarian recommendation system according to a second embodiment of the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0018] DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. Note that the present invention is not limited to the following preferred embodiments.

[0019] (First embodiment) First, a veterinarian suggestion device according to a first embodiment of the present invention will be described. Fig. 1 is a conceptual diagram showing an example of the configuration of a veterinarian suggestion device according to this embodiment. As shown in Fig. 1, the veterinarian suggestion device 1 according to this embodiment suggests specialists to veterinarians who have performed primary care for an owner or a family doctor, and includes at least a specialist database unit 11, a specialist suggestion unit 12, and a reservation unit 13. In addition, the veterinarian suggestion device 1 according to the embodiment can be provided with a patient database unit (not shown) as necessary.

[0020] [Specialist] The "specialists" proposed by the veterinarian suggestion device of this embodiment are veterinarians who have expertise in, for example, the species or breed of animals they treat, the medical specialty, or the test items. Veterinary medicine is a general medical practice that covers all medical fields. For this reason, veterinarians have a wider range of medical treatments than human medicine, and the burden is greater. In addition, there are few veterinary hospitals that are equipped with all the medical equipment required to test for multiple diseases. Therefore, veterinarians who belong to veterinary hospitals that are equipped with the advanced medical equipment necessary for disease testing are also considered to be specialists in "test items" as veterinarians who can perform the tests.

[0021] Furthermore, veterinarians may treat all animal species kept as pets. However, each species of animal has different characteristics such as susceptibility to diseases, personality, and body structure, and even within the same species, each breed may have different susceptibility to diseases, personality, body structure, etc., so it is difficult for even veterinarians to understand the characteristics of all species and breeds. For this reason, veterinarians who have expertise in the animal species or breeds they treat are also included in specialists.

[0022] [Specialist Database Division 11] Veterinarian information classified by specialty is stored in the specialist database unit 11. Items for classifying veterinarians by specialty include, for example, the species or breed of animals they specialize in and their ages, the medical specialty they specialize in, and the types of tests they can perform.

[0023] Here, the "species" of animals refers to the types of animals kept as pets, such as dogs, cats, birds, rabbits, ferrets, hamsters, guinea pigs, snakes, turtles, squirrels, flying squirrels, mice, hedgehogs, and lizards.

[0024] In addition to or instead of categorizing by "species," cats can be classified by "breed." In this case, the "breed" refers to dogs such as poodles (teacup, tiny, toy, miniature, medium, standard), chihuahuas, miniature dachshunds, Shiba Inu, Pomeranians, Yorkshire terriers, miniature schnauzers, Shih Tzus, French bulldogs, papillons, Maltese, Labrador, Dalmatians, and chow chows. In cats, the Scottish fold, American shorthair, Norwegian forest cat, Russian blue, British shorthair, ragdoll, Maine coon, and Persian are examples. In rabbits, the Netherland dwarf, Holland lop, lop-eared, mini rex, dwarf lop, and American fuzzy lop are examples.

[0025] Examples of "medical departments" include internal medicine, surgery, ophthalmology, dentistry, otolaryngology, neurology, neurology, respiratory medicine, gastroenterology, digestive medicine, circulatory medicine, and dermatology.

[0026] Examples of "test items" include inflammation tests, biochemical tests, cardiac function tests, endocrine tests, allergy tests, infectious disease tests, microbiological tests, morphological tests, blood tests, X-ray tests, ultrasound tests, cytological tests, endoscopic tests, CT tests, and pathological tests.

[0027] Veterinarian information can be classified, for example, using animal insurance claim data. Specifically, veterinarians are classified based on the number of times they have treated, operated on, or examined a particular species, breed, or disease, or the cost of treating a particular disease or the number of insurance claims, and it is determined whether or not they have expertise in the species or breed of animals, medical specialty, and examination items, etc. If it is determined that they have expertise, they are registered as a "specialist" in that item.

[0028] The method of determining whether a doctor is a specialist is not particularly limited, but for example, a method such as "if the number of surgeries for cardiovascular disease is 10 or more, the doctor is determined to be a cardiologist." Another method is to rank doctors by the number of consultations, and register the top 10 doctors as specialists. Furthermore, the doctor may be determined based on whether or not the doctor has been certified as a specialist by a veterinary-related association, the number and content of published papers, the research lab at the alma mater, etc., and the determination may be made by comprehensively considering these factors.

[0029] It is preferable to classify veterinarian information based on the number of times a particular species, breed, or disease has been treated, operated on, or examined, or the number of insurance claims filed, in comparison with the average for the area (prefecture, ward, town, etc.) of the animal hospital to which the veterinarian belongs. Since diseases that are likely to occur vary from area to area, a more accurate level of expertise can be considered by limiting the area and comparing it with the average.

[0030] The specialist database unit 11 may store, as veterinarian information, the addresses of veterinary clinics to which veterinarians registered as specialists belong. Alternatively, veterinary clinics may be classified and stored according to the species or breed of animals they specialize in, the medical departments they specialize in, and the items they can examine.

[0031] The specialist database unit 11 is preferably configured to be connected to an electronic medical record system or the like owned by the registered veterinary clinic, and the number of treatments for a certain disease or the number of insurance claims is appropriately uploaded and stored each time an animal patient is examined. Also, if a patient database unit is provided, animal patient information is uploaded and stored each time a veterinarian examines an animal patient, so the specialist database 11 can be linked to a patient database without being connected to an electronic medical record system, and the number of treatments or the number of insurance claims can be appropriately uploaded and stored.

[0032] The specialist database 11 may be linked to a database of an insurance company or the like, and may be configured so that the number of treatments for a certain disease or the number of insurance claims is uploaded and stored as appropriate. In such a configuration, the registration of a specialist may be changed. For example, if a veterinarian who has examined otolaryngology 30 times and is determined to be an otolaryngology specialist updates the number of respiratory examinations to 35, and many other veterinarians have examined otolaryngology more than 30 times, the veterinarian will be determined to be a respiratory specialist, and the registration details will be changed.

[0033] The specialist database unit 11 preferably has a function for grasping and updating the dates and times when each veterinarian registered as a specialist is available to treat an animal patient in real time, and is configured so that the owner and / or the veterinarian who performed the primary medical care can grasp the dates and times when the animal patient is available in real time. Specifically, it is preferable that the dates and times when the animal patient is available (available dates and times) can be registered as one piece of veterinarian information, and the contents can be updated appropriately by the veterinarian himself or a person related to the animal hospital from an external terminal.

[0034] [Specialist Suggestion Department 12] The specialist suggestion unit 12 selects and suggests a specialist suitable for treating an animal patient from the specialist database unit 11 based on the "disease name," "examination items," or "treatment details" input from an external terminal. For example, when a "disease name" is input from an external terminal, the specialist suggestion unit 12 searches the specialist database unit 11 to select a veterinarian (specialist) who has expertise in a medical field suitable for treating the disease, and outputs the result. The output data may include not only the specialist's name, but also the specialist's available dates and times, the veterinary hospital to which the specialist belongs, and the address, telephone number, website, etc.

[0035] Here, examples of the "disease name" used in the search for a specialist include circulatory system disease, oral disease, respiratory system disease, digestive system disease, liver / biliary / pancreatic exocrine disease, urinary system disease, endocrine / metabolic disease, neurological disease, muscular disease, bone and joint disease, blood / immune system disease, skin disease, ophthalmological disease, reproductive system / breast disease, infectious disease, behavioral disease, and genetic disease. For example, when "digestive system disease" is input as the "disease name," the specialist suggestion unit 12 searches for gastroenterological specialists in the specialist database unit 11, and selects and outputs one or more specialists based on the results.

[0036] Also, for example, when "CT examination" is input as the "examination item", a search is performed for CT examination specialists or specialists belonging to veterinary clinics that can perform CT examinations, and one or more specialists are selected and output based on the search results. Note that the method by which the specialist suggestion unit 12 searches for specialists in the specialist database unit 11 is not particularly limited, and any known search method can be applied.

[0037] Furthermore, the "medical care content" input from the external terminal can also include content related to health care such as "health checkup" and "vaccination". At the time of performing health care such as regular health checkup and vaccination, the possibility of contracting a specific disease is low, so it is preferable for health care to be performed by a specialist who knows what diseases each species or breed and age of animals is susceptible to. Therefore, when "health checkup" or "vaccination" is input as the "medical care content", the input of the species or breed and age of the animal patient is requested, and the specialist suggestion unit 12 is set to output the number of treatments or examinations by species or breed and age of the animal patient with a priority order, and a specialist suitable for the health checkup or vaccination is output.

[0038] The method of inputting the "disease name", "examination items", and "treatment details" is not particularly limited, and for example, the owner or the veterinarian who performed the primary medical treatment may operate an external terminal to input the information to the input unit 14 provided in the veterinarian suggestion device 1. In addition, a disease determination unit may be provided separately that uses a trained model to determine the disease that an animal patient suffers from from an image of the animal patient, and the image of the animal patient may be provided by the owner or the veterinarian who performed the primary medical treatment, and the determination result may be input as the "disease name".

[0039] When outputting two or more specialists, the specialist suggestion unit 12 may output them with a priority order. For example, when "digestive disease" is input as the "disease name" and it is set to preferentially search for specialists who have treated a large number of cases, the specialist suggestion unit 12 selects and outputs gastroenterological specialists in descending order of the number of times that digestive diseases have been treated.

[0040] The specialist suggestion unit 12 can also compare the address of the owner with the address of the veterinary clinic to which the specialist belongs, and output preferentially a specialist who belongs to a veterinary clinic close to the owner's address. In this case, the comparison between the address of the owner and the address of the veterinary clinic to which the specialist belongs can be performed by any method, such as judging the straight-line distance (for example, within a 5 km radius) or judging the time required by walking or driving. In this way, by taking the address into consideration, it is possible to suggest a specialist at a veterinary clinic located at a distance that does not burden the owner or the animal patient.

[0041] [Reservation section 13] The reservation unit 13 makes a medical appointment with a specialist proposed by the specialist suggestion unit 12. The method of making a medical appointment is not particularly limited, and a medical appointment may be made with the specialist based on the owner's desired appointment date and time and the specialist's available date and time. For example, when the owner or the veterinarian who performed the primary medical treatment inputs the desired appointment date and time from an external terminal by specifying a specialist to be reserved from one or more specialists output from the specialist suggestion unit 12, the reservation unit 13 compares the specialist's available date and time with the desired appointment date and time, selects an overlapping date and time, and outputs the selected date and time as the appointment date and time to an external terminal operated by the specified specialist, the owner, and the veterinarian who performed the primary medical treatment.

[0042] The owner's desired reservation date and time may refer to a date and time inputted from an external terminal to the input unit 14, and when a specialist suggested by the specialist suggestion unit 12 is outputted, the specialist's available date and time may also be outputted so that the owner can select a date and time when the specialist can make a reservation. The specialist's available date and time may refer to a date and time stored in the specialist database unit 11 as one of the veterinarian information, or may refer to a date and time inputted from an external terminal via the input unit 14 by the specialist (veterinarian) himself or a person related to the veterinary clinic, in response to a request from the reservation unit 13.

[0043] Furthermore, the reservation unit 13 may provide the animal patient information and / or information on the urgency of the symptoms of the animal patient to the specialist who has made the appointment. Here, the "animal patient information" is information obtained by the veterinarian who has performed the primary care by examining the animal patient, and is information necessary for treating, examining, prescribing, etc. the animal patient. Specifically, it is interview information, physical findings information, examination history information, diagnosis history information, treatment history information, medication history information, or prescription history information. In addition, when symptoms appear in the body of the animal patient, images (still images and videos) of a part or all of the body of the animal patient can also be provided as the animal patient information.

[0044] The "animal patient information" also includes information on whether a microchip has been fitted, whether the animal has been vaccinated against rabies and other diseases, and whether the animal has pet insurance. Specifically, by storing in the patient database the number of the microchip fitted to the patient's animal and the specialist who fitted the microchip, as well as the vaccination records of the patient's animal and the veterinarian who administered the vaccinations, in association with each other, it becomes possible to easily provide this information to the specialist who has made an appointment to see the patient.

[0045] The reservation unit 13 may have a function to confirm various arrangements and transportation requests at the request of the specialist or the owner. For example, when the veterinarian who performed the primary medical treatment or the owner selects (requests) "arrangements", the reservation unit 13 transmits a request for on-site medical treatment (medical treatment at the veterinary hospital to which the veterinarian who performed the primary medical treatment belongs) to the terminal of the specialist who made the reservation for medical treatment or the terminal of the veterinary hospital to which the specialist belongs. Also, when the result of the medical treatment of the animal patient by the veterinarian who performed the primary medical treatment indicates that emergency treatment or examination is required, the veterinarian who performed the primary medical treatment or the owner selects "transport". As a result, the reservation unit 13 makes a reservation for a vehicle to transport the animal patient to the veterinary hospital to which the specialist belongs.

[0046] The above-mentioned specialist database unit 11, specialist suggestion unit 12, reservation unit 13 and patient database unit may be provided in the same information processing device, or may be distributed and implemented in multiple information processing devices connected to each other. Also, the specialist database unit 11 and the patient database unit may be provided in a database server, or may be provided on a cloud server, or may be a distributed database.

[0047] [Operation] Next, an operation of the veterinarian suggestion device 1 of this embodiment, i.e., a method of suggesting a specialist suitable for procedures such as treatment, examination, and health management of an animal patient using the veterinarian suggestion device 1, will be described. Fig. 2 is a flowchart showing the veterinarian suggestion method of this embodiment. As shown in Fig. 2, the veterinarian suggestion method of this embodiment includes a specialist suggestion step (step S1) of selecting a specialist based on a disease name or examination item, and an appointment step (step S2) of making an appointment for treatment with the specialist selected in the specialist suggestion step.

[0048] <Step S1: Specialist recommendation process> When the disease name, test items, or medical treatment details are input into the input unit 14 of the veterinarian suggestion device 1 from an external terminal, the specialist suggestion unit 12 searches the specialist database unit 11, which stores veterinarian information classified by specialty, selects one or more specialists suitable for treating the animal patient, and outputs the selected specialists to the external terminal.

[0049] <Step S2: Reservation process> When one of the specialists output by the specialist suggestion unit step is selected at an external terminal and the owner's desired appointment date and time is input to the input unit 14, the reservation unit 13 makes an appointment for medical treatment based on the owner's desired appointment date and time and the specialist's available date and time. In this reservation step, various arrangements and transportation reservations may be made in addition to the appointment for medical treatment.

[0050] [program] Each of the above-mentioned steps can be implemented by creating a computer program for realizing each function of the veterinarian suggestion device 1 and installing it in one or more computers. That is, the veterinarian suggestion method of this embodiment can be implemented by having a computer execute a specialist suggestion function for selecting one or more specialists suitable for treating an animal patient from a specialist database unit storing veterinarian information classified by specialty based on the disease name, test item, or medical treatment content input from an external terminal, and a reservation function for making a medical treatment reservation with the specialist selected by the specialist suggestion function.

[0051] It should be noted that each of the above-mentioned functions does not need to be included in one program, but rather a program may be created for each function and executed by linking them together. In that case, each program may be divided and implemented on two or more computers or devices and operated.

[0052] As described above in detail, the veterinarian suggestion device of the present embodiment can automatically select a specialist suitable for the treatment of an animal patient and make a medical appointment at the request of the owner or the veterinarian who performed the primary medical care, so that the owner or the veterinarian who performed the primary medical care does not need to contact multiple specialists and explain the symptoms each time. As a result, the burden on both the veterinarian and the owner of the animal patient can be reduced. In addition, the veterinarian suggestion device of the present embodiment has a specialist database in which veterinarian information is classified and stored by specialty such as the species or breed of animal, medical department, and testable items, so that a specialist suitable for the treatment of the animal patient, such as treatment, examination, and health management, can be selected and suggested to the owner or the veterinarian who performed the primary medical care.

[0053] (Modification of the first embodiment) Next, a veterinarian suggestion device according to a modified example of the first embodiment of the present invention will be described. Fig. 3 is a conceptual diagram showing a configuration example of the veterinarian suggestion device of this modified example. In Fig. 3, the same components as those in the veterinarian suggestion device 1 shown in Fig. 1 are given the same reference numerals, and detailed explanations will be omitted. As shown in Fig. 3, the veterinarian suggestion device 2 of this modified example includes a re-suggestion unit 15 in addition to the respective units of the veterinarian suggestion device of the first embodiment described above.

[0054] [Reproposal part 15] If there is no date and time that matches the owner's desired reservation date and time among the available dates and times of the specialists output from the specialist suggestion unit 12 and the reservation cannot be made by the reservation unit 13, the re-suggestion unit 15 changes the search conditions and searches again in the specialist database 11, and selects and outputs a specialist other than that selected by the specialist suggestion unit 12. The re-search by the re-suggestion unit 15 is performed based on feedback from the reservation unit 13.

[0055] For example, when an owner of a cat suffering from kidney disease visits the hospital, a kidney disease specialist is selected and suggested by the specialist suggestion unit 14, and an appointment is made with the specialist by the reservation unit 13, but there is no date and time that matches the owner's desired reservation date and time among the available dates and times of the specialist, the re-suggestion unit 15 cancels the search for the disease name "kidney disease", changes the search condition to the species name "cat", and selects and suggests a cat specialist. Such a change in search conditions can be realized by providing a function for the veterinarian who performed the primary care to instruct the change in search conditions when the re-suggestion unit 15 receives feedback from the reservation unit 14, but the re-suggestion unit 15 may automatically change the search conditions.

[0056] The search for a specialist by the re-suggestion unit 15 can be performed in the same manner as the specialist suggestion unit 12 described above, except for excluding specialists (veterinarians) that have already been suggested.

[0057] [Operation] Next, the operation of the veterinarian suggestion device 2 of this modified example will be described. Fig. 4 is a flow chart showing a method for suggesting a veterinarian using the veterinarian suggestion device 2 shown in Fig. 3. As shown in Fig. 4, the veterinarian suggestion method of this modified example performs a specialist suggestion step (step S11) of selecting a specialist based on the disease name, examination item, or medical treatment, and an appointment date and time adjustment step (step S12) of determining whether the selected specialist's available date and time match the owner's desired appointment date and time. As a result, if the available date and time match, a reservation step (step S13) of making a medical appointment with the specialist is performed, and if the available date and time do not match, a re-suggestion step (step S14) of selecting another specialist is performed.

[0058] After another specialist is selected in the re-suggestion step (step S14), the appointment date and time adjustment step (step S12) is performed again, and if the available date and time match the desired appointment date and time, the appointment step (step S13) is executed.

[0059] <Step S11: Specialist recommendation process> When at least one of the disease name, test items, and medical treatment details is input into the input unit 14 of the veterinarian suggestion device 2 from an external terminal, the specialist suggestion unit 12 searches the specialist database unit 11 which stores veterinarian information classified by specialty, selects one or more specialists suitable for treatment such as treatment, examination, and health management of the animal patient, and outputs the selected specialists to the external terminal.

[0060] <Step S12: Reservation Date and Time Adjustment Process> Next, for the specialists output by the specialist suggestion unit step S11, one specialist is designated at an external terminal, and when the designated specialist and the owner's desired appointment date and time are input into the input unit 14, the reservation unit 13 compares the specialist's available date and time with the owner's desired appointment date and time to determine whether or not there is a matching date and time. If the determination result shows that there is a matching date and time, the reservation unit 13 continues with the reservation step S13, but if there is no matching date and time, the process in the reservation unit 13 is interrupted and the process proceeds to a re-proposal step S14.

[0061] <Step S13: Reservation process> If there is a date and time that matches the available date and time and the desired date and time in the appointment date and time adjustment step S12, the appointment is made with a specialist for the matching date and time in the reservation unit 13. In this reservation step S12, various arrangements and transportation reservations may be made in addition to the appointment for the appointment.

[0062] <Step S14: Re-proposal process> If there is no date and time that matches the available date and time and the desired date and time in the appointment date and time adjustment step S12, the re-proposal unit 15 changes the search conditions from the specialist proposal step S11, searches the specialist database 11, and selects and outputs a specialist other than the specialist previously proposed. In this case, the search conditions may be changed, for example, by changing the classification items used in the search from "disease name" to "species" or "breed," "examination items," or "treatment details," or the priority settings may be changed without changing the classification items so that a specialist belonging to a veterinary clinic located some distance from the owner's address is also selected.

[0063] <Step S15: Reservation date and time readjustment process> When a specialist is selected by the re-proposal step S14, the reservation unit 13 compares the specialist's available date and time with the owner's desired reservation date and time to determine whether there is a matching date and time. If the specialist selected by the re-proposal step S14 is available for reservation at the desired reservation date and time, the reservation step S13 described above is performed to make a reservation with the specialist. On the other hand, if there is no date and time that matches the specialist's available date and time selected by the re-proposal unit 15 and the owner's desired reservation date and time, the process in the reservation unit 13 is interrupted, and the re-proposal unit 15 performs the re-proposal step S14 again.

[0064] As described above, the veterinarian suggestion device 2 of this modified example operates in the same manner as the veterinarian suggestion device 1 of the first embodiment described above in terms of the flow from when the disease name, test items, or medical treatment details are input to when a specialist is suggested. However, it differs from the first embodiment in that if the suggested specialist is unable to handle the case, it is possible to suggest and make an appointment with a different specialist.

[0065] [program] Each of the above-mentioned steps can be implemented by creating a computer program for implementing each function of the veterinarian suggestion device and implementing it in one or more computers. That is, the veterinarian suggestion method of this embodiment can be implemented by having a computer execute a specialist suggestion function for selecting one or more specialists suitable for treating an animal patient from a specialist database storing veterinarian information classified by specialty based on a disease name, examination item, or medical treatment content input from an external terminal, an appointment date and time adjustment function for determining whether the selected specialist's available date and time match the owner's desired appointment date and time, a reservation function for making an appointment with the selected specialist when the available date and time match the desired appointment date and time, and a re-suggestion function for selecting another specialist suitable for treating an animal patient from the specialist database when the available date and time do not match the desired appointment date and time.

[0066] It should be noted that each of the above-mentioned functions does not need to be included in one program, but rather a program may be created for each function and executed by linking them together. In that case, each program may be divided and implemented on two or more computers or devices and operated.

[0067] In the veterinarian suggestion device of this modification, even if a reservation cannot be made with the specialist selected and suggested by the specialist suggestion unit, the re-suggestion unit changes the conditions and searches again to suggest a specialist other than the one previously suggested, so that a specialist more suitable for treating the animal patient than the veterinarian who performed the primary care can be easily selected and reserved. Note that the configuration and effects of this modification other than those described above are the same as those of the first embodiment described above.

[0068] Second embodiment Next, a veterinarian suggestion system according to a second embodiment of the present invention will be described. Fig. 5 is a conceptual diagram showing an example of the configuration of the veterinarian suggestion system of this embodiment. As shown in Fig. 5, the veterinarian suggestion system 3 of this embodiment includes the veterinarian suggestion device 1 of the first embodiment described above. The veterinarian suggestion device 1 is connectable via a network to a specialist terminal 31 owned by a specialist or the hospital to which the specialist belongs, a family doctor terminal 32 owned by a family doctor who provides primary care or the hospital to which the specialist belongs, and an owner terminal 33 owned by a pet owner.

[0069] In the veterinarian recommendation system 3 of this embodiment, a specialist database may be provided in a server (specialist database server 34) mutually connected to the veterinarian recommendation device 1. The veterinarian recommendation system 3 may also be provided with a patient database server 35 in which animal patient information is stored. The specialist database server 34 and the patient database server 35 may be, for example, a general-purpose computer such as a workstation or a personal computer, or may be configured by cloud computing.

[0070] The network connecting the veterinarian suggestion device 1 with various terminals and servers is constructed by, for example, a public telephone line network, a mobile phone line network, a wireless communication network, Ethernet (registered trademark), the Internet, an intranet, or the like.

[0071] [Patient Database Server 35] The patient database server 35 is provided with a patient database in which at least animal patient information is stored, and may further store created medical records, etc. The information stored in this patient database server 35 may be made shareable between each hospital of a veterinary hospital group consisting of multiple veterinary hospitals operated by a common operating company. The patient database server 35 may also be connected to an electronic medical record system, etc., introduced by the veterinarian or specialist who performed the primary medical care at the veterinary hospital, and the animal patient information of the animal patients examined at the veterinary hospital may be uploaded and accumulated as appropriate.

[0072] With this configuration, the specialist suggested by the veterinarian suggestion device 1 can refer to the animal patient information via the patient database 35, and can easily create the medical record of the animal patient. As a result, the specialist providing secondary care does not need to treat the animal patient from scratch, and the owner does not need to give repeated explanations, reducing the burden of explanations. The patient database server 35 may have a function that requires a password or the like when connecting, so that other specialists not in charge of the patient's care cannot view or edit the data.

[0073] [Specialist Doctor Terminal 31] The specialist terminal 31 is a terminal owned by the specialist himself or a terminal installed in the veterinary hospital to which the specialist belongs, and may be, for example, a mobile phone, a smartphone, a tablet computer, a personal computer, etc. The specialist terminal 31 may be any terminal that can be connected to the specialist database server 34, and is not particularly limited, but is preferably a terminal that can manage the response status such as the shifts of veterinary medical staff and the available dates and times for animal patients, and record them in the specialist database server 34.

[0074] [Family Doctor Terminal 32] The family doctor terminal 32 is a terminal owned by the veterinarian who performed the primary care or a terminal installed in the animal hospital to which the veterinarian belongs, and may be, for example, a mobile phone, a smartphone, a tablet computer, or a personal computer. The family doctor terminal 32 may also be any terminal that can be connected to the specialist database server 34, and is not particularly limited, but is preferably a terminal with a camera that can capture images of the injury or illness of the animal patient. By connecting the family doctor terminal 32 to the veterinarian suggestion device 1, the veterinarian who performed the primary care can input or transmit animal patient information, etc. to the veterinarian suggestion device 1 or the patient database server 35, and can obtain information on specialists suggested by the veterinarian suggestion device 1 and medical appointments on behalf of or together with the owner.

[0075] In addition, since a veterinarian who has expertise in at least one of "species or breed," "medical specialty," and "available examination subjects" is registered as a "specialist" in the specialist database server 34, in the veterinarian recommendation system 3 of this embodiment, a veterinarian (family doctor) who has performed primary care for one animal patient may be selected as a specialist for another animal patient. In such a case, the "family doctor terminal 32" is treated as the "specialist terminal 31" for the other animal patients.

[0076] [Owner Terminal 33] The owner terminal 33 is a terminal owned by the owner of the animal patient. By connecting the veterinarian suggestion device 1 to the owner terminal 33, the owner can obtain the reservation results by the reservation unit 13 of the veterinarian suggestion device 1. The owner terminal 33 may be, for example, a mobile phone, a smartphone, a tablet computer, or a personal computer. Even if the owner terminal 33 is also connected to the patient database server 35 via a network, it is preferable that the patient database cannot be accessed from the owner terminal 33 in order to prevent personal information leakage.

[0077] As described above in detail, in the veterinarian recommendation system of this embodiment, the veterinarian who performed the primary medical treatment and the specialist who performs the secondary medical treatment share the information of the animal patient, so the specialist does not need to treat the animal patient from scratch, and the owner does not need to explain repeatedly. As a result, the burden on both the veterinarian and the owner can be reduced. Note that the configuration and effects of this embodiment other than those described above are the same as those of the first embodiment and its modified example.

[0078] The present invention can also have the following configuration. [1] A specialist database unit storing veterinarian information classified by specialty; A specialist suggestion unit that selects one or more specialists suitable for treating an animal patient from the specialist database unit based on a disease name, a test item, or a medical treatment content input from an external terminal; a reservation unit for making a medical appointment with the specialist selected by the specialist suggestion unit; A veterinarian suggestion device comprising: [2] The veterinarian suggestion device described in [1], in which the specialist database unit classifies veterinarians at least according to the species or breed of animals they specialize in, the medical specialty they specialize in, and the tests they can perform. [3] The veterinarian suggestion device described in [1] or [2], wherein the reservation unit determines the consultation date and time based on the owner's desired reservation date and time input from an external terminal and the available dates and times provided by the specialist selected by the specialist suggestion unit. [4] The veterinarian suggestion device described in any of [1] to [3] further comprises a re-suggestion unit that selects a specialist other than the specialist selected in the specialist suggestion unit from the specialist database unit when the specialist's available date and time does not match the owner's desired appointment date and time. [5] The veterinarian suggestion device according to any one of [1] to [4], wherein the specialist suggestion unit selects a specialist according to a preset priority order. [6] The veterinarian recommendation device described in any one of [1] to [5], wherein the reservation unit, after a consultation appointment with a specialist is completed, performs at least one of the following: providing animal patient information to the specialist, providing information regarding the urgency of symptoms to the specialist, arranging for an on-site consultation by the specialist, and reserving transportation of the animal patient. [7] A veterinarian recommendation system comprising the veterinarian recommendation device according to any one of [1] to [6]. [8] A specialist database server storing veterinarian information classified by specialty; A veterinarian recommendation device including at least a specialist recommendation unit that selects one or more specialists suitable for treating an animal patient from the specialist database server based on a disease name, a test item, or a medical treatment content input from an external terminal, and a reservation unit that makes a medical treatment reservation with the specialist selected by the specialist recommendation unit; A veterinarian suggestion system with [9] 1. A method for suggesting specialists to an owner and / or a primary care veterinarian using one or more veterinarian suggestion devices, comprising: The veterinarian suggestion device A specialist suggestion step of selecting one or more specialists suitable for treating an animal patient from a specialist database storing veterinarian information classified by specialty based on a disease name, a test item, or a medical treatment content input from an external terminal; a reservation step of making a medical appointment with the specialist selected by the specialist recommendation step; A veterinarian-proposed method.

[10] a reservation date and time adjustment step of comparing the available date and time of the specialist selected in the specialist suggestion step with the desired reservation date and time of the owner and determining whether or not there is a matching date and time; If there is a matching date and time, perform the reservation step described above; If there is no matching date and time, a re-suggestion step is performed to select a specialist other than the specialist selected in the specialist suggestion step from the specialist database. The veterinarian-suggested method described in [9].

[11] A program that suggests specialists to owners and / or primary care veterinarians, A specialist suggestion function that selects one or more specialists suitable for treating an animal patient from a specialist database that stores veterinarian information classified by specialty based on the disease name, test items, or medical treatment details of the animal patient input from an external terminal; and A reservation function for making a medical appointment with a specialist selected by the specialist suggestion function; A program that causes a computer to execute the following.

[12] Further, the system has a reservation date and time adjustment function for comparing the available date and time of the specialist selected in the specialist suggestion function with the desired reservation date and time of the owner and determining whether or not there is a matching date and time; If there is a match, execute the reservation function. If there is no matching date and time, a re-suggestion function is executed to select a specialist from the specialist database that is different from the specialist selected by the specialist suggestion function. The program described in

[11] . [Explanation of symbols]

[0079] 1, 2: Veterinarian-recommended device 3: Veterinarian suggestion system 11: Specialist Database Department 12: Specialist Physician Suggestion Department 13: Reservations 14: Input section 15: Re-proposal department 31: Specialist doctor terminal 32: Family doctor terminal 33: Owner terminal 34: Specialist database server 35: Patient database server

Claims

1. A specialist database unit storing veterinarian information classified by specialty; A specialist suggestion unit that selects one or more specialists suitable for treating an animal patient from the specialist database unit based on a disease name, a test item, or a medical treatment content input from an external terminal; a reservation unit for making a medical appointment with the specialist selected by the specialist suggestion unit; A veterinarian suggestion device comprising:

2. The veterinarian recommendation device according to claim 1 , wherein the specialist database section classifies veterinarians at least according to the species or breed of animals they specialize in, the medical specialty they specialize in, and the items of examination they can perform.

3. The veterinarian suggestion device of claim 1, wherein the reservation unit determines a consultation date and time based on the owner's desired reservation date and time input from an external terminal and the available dates and times provided by the specialist selected by the specialist suggestion unit.

4. The veterinarian suggestion device of claim 1, further comprising a re-suggestion unit that selects a specialist other than the specialist selected in the specialist suggestion unit from the specialist database unit when the specialist's available date and time does not match the owner's desired appointment date and time.

5. The veterinarian suggestion device according to claim 1 , wherein the specialist suggestion unit selects a specialist according to a preset priority order.

6. The veterinarian recommendation device of claim 1, wherein after a consultation appointment with a specialist is completed, the reservation unit performs at least one of the following: providing animal patient information to the specialist, providing information regarding the urgency of symptoms to the specialist, arranging for the specialist to provide on-site consultation, and reserving transportation of the animal patient.

7. A veterinarian recommendation system comprising the veterinarian recommendation device according to any one of claims 1 to 6.

8. A specialist database server storing veterinarian information classified by specialty; A veterinarian recommendation device including at least a specialist recommendation unit that selects one or more specialists suitable for treating an animal patient from the specialist database server based on a disease name, a test item, or a medical treatment content input from an external terminal, and a reservation unit that makes a medical treatment reservation with the specialist selected by the specialist recommendation unit; A veterinarian suggestion system with

9. 1. A method for suggesting specialists to an owner and / or a primary care veterinarian using one or more veterinarian suggestion devices, comprising: The veterinarian suggestion device A specialist suggestion step of selecting one or more specialists suitable for treating an animal patient from a specialist database storing veterinarian information classified by specialty based on a disease name, a test item, or a medical treatment content input from an external terminal; a reservation step of making a medical appointment with the specialist selected by the specialist recommendation step; A veterinarian-proposed method.

10. a reservation date and time adjustment step of comparing the available date and time of the specialist selected in the specialist suggestion step with the desired reservation date and time of the owner and determining whether or not there is a matching date and time; If there is a matching date and time, perform the reservation step described above; If there is no matching date and time, a re-suggestion step is performed to select a specialist other than the specialist selected in the specialist suggestion step from the specialist database. The veterinarian suggestion method according to claim 9.

11. A program that suggests specialists to owners and / or primary care veterinarians, A specialist suggestion function for selecting one or more specialists suitable for treating an animal patient from a specialist database storing veterinarian information classified by specialty based on a disease name, a test item, or a medical treatment content input from an external terminal; and A reservation function for making a medical appointment with a specialist selected by the specialist suggestion function; A program that causes a computer to execute the following.

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