Home medical care support device, home medical care support method, and program
The home-visit medical care support device optimizes visit orders for medical professionals by integrating risk and supplementary information, addressing the challenge of inadequate care planning in home visit systems, ensuring timely and effective patient management.
Patent Information
- Authority / Receiving Office
- JP · JP
- Patent Type
- Patents
- Current Assignee / Owner
- CANON KK
- Filing Date
- 2022-03-11
- Publication Date
- 2026-06-24
Smart Images
Figure 0007879658000001 
Figure 0007879658000002 
Figure 0007879658000003
Abstract
Description
Technical Field
[0001] The embodiments disclosed in this specification and the drawings relate to a home visit medical support device, a home visit medical support method, and a program.
Background Art
[0002] In recent years, the opportunities for home visit medical care, which visits the homes of patients receiving treatment at home, etc., have been increasing. In the case of home visit medical care, it is important to judge risks such as the symptoms of the patient, the progress of the disease, and future changes in the condition. For this reason, for example, proposals have been made regarding techniques for selecting medical staff who can visit in the shortest time in response to requests from patients. Furthermore, for example, proposals have been made regarding techniques for determining the urgency from alarm information transmitted from patients and selecting the optimal medical staff.
[0003] However, when the number of patients who are the targets of home visit medical care is large and there is a shortage of medical staff who conduct home visit medical care, it is difficult to perform appropriate home visit medical care considering the risks of the patients. In particular, visits to patients suffering from diseases with a high risk of sudden changes cannot be planned in a predetermined order or time, and sudden changes in the visit plan may occur.
Prior Art Documents
Patent Documents
[0004]
Patent Document 1
Patent Document 2
Summary of the Invention
Problems to be Solved by the Invention
[0005] The problem that the embodiments disclosed in this specification and drawings aim to solve is determining an appropriate order of visits based on the patient's risk and the circumstances of the home visit. However, the problems that the embodiments disclosed in this specification and drawings aim to solve are not limited to the above problem. Problems corresponding to the effects of each configuration shown in the embodiments described later can also be positioned as other problems. [Means for solving the problem]
[0006] The home-visit medical care support device of this embodiment includes a risk information collection unit, a home-visit medical care information collection unit, a visit order determination unit, and a visit order provision unit. The risk information collection unit collects risk information, which includes information about the condition of multiple patients who are the subjects of home-visit medical care. The home-visit medical care information collection unit collects home-visit medical care information, which includes information about the medical professionals who will visit the patients. The visit order determination unit determines the order in which the medical professionals will visit the patients, based on the risk information and the home-visit medical care information. The visit order provision unit provides information representing the visit order to medical personnel, including at least the medical professionals. [Brief explanation of the drawing]
[0007] [Figure 1] A diagram showing an example of the functional configuration and operating environment of a home medical care support device according to an embodiment. [Figure 2] A flowchart showing an example of the processing flow in a home medical care support device according to the embodiment. [Figure 3] A diagram showing an example of risk information collected by a home-visit medical care support device according to this embodiment. [Figure 4] A diagram showing an example of home medical care information collected by a home medical care support device according to the embodiment. [Figure 5] A diagram showing an example of supplementary information collected by the home medical care support device according to this embodiment. [Figure 6] A diagram showing an example of a visit sequence determined by the home medical care support device according to this embodiment. [Figure 7] A flowchart showing an example of another processing flow in the home medical care support device according to the embodiment. [Modes for carrying out the invention]
[0008] The following describes the home-visit medical care support device, home-visit medical care support method, and program of the embodiment with reference to the drawings. The home-visit medical care support device is a device that is incorporated into, for example, a regional collaborative system in which local medical professionals work together to treat patients, and is used to support medical professionals who provide home-visit medical care. Medical professionals include, for example, doctors and nurses who provide home-visit medical care (including doctors and nurses who belong to a hospital and mainly provide outpatient care at the hospital but are also capable of providing home-visit medical care), as well as drivers of vehicles that travel with doctors and nurses, and other persons who act together with doctors and nurses. There may be multiple medical professionals or medical personnel.
[0009] Figure 1 shows an example of the functional configuration and operating environment of a home-visit medical care support device according to an embodiment. The home-visit medical care support device 100 communicates via a network with devices that store various information related to home-visit medical care, such as server devices and storage devices incorporated into a cloud computing system. The network includes, for example, the internet, a WAN (Wide Area Network), a LAN (Local Area Network), provider devices, and wireless base stations. The home-visit medical care support device 100 may be implemented by a server device on the network.
[0010] Information related to home-visit medical care includes, for example, risk information 10, home-visit medical care information 20, and supplementary information 30. Risk information 10 includes information about the condition of multiple patients who are the target of home-visit medical care. Figure 1 shows an example where risk information 10 includes, for example, patient monitoring information 12, basic patient information 14, and similar case information 16. Home-visit medical care information 20 includes information about healthcare professionals who visit patients to provide home-visit medical care. Figure 1 shows an example where home-visit medical care information 20 includes, for example, healthcare professional information 22, visit information 24, and medical procedure information 26. Supplementary information 30 includes information that may affect healthcare professionals' visits to patients. Figure 1 shows an example where supplementary information 30 includes, for example, traffic information 32, weather / regional information 34, and receiving hospital information 36.
[0011] Patient monitoring information 12 is information about the patient's current health status obtained by monitoring the patient's condition. Patient monitoring information 12 includes numerical information such as body temperature, blood oxygen saturation (SpO2), blood pressure, and pulse rate. Patient monitoring information 12 also includes audio information such as lung auscultation sounds. Patient monitoring information 12 also includes video and image information such as the patient's movements captured by a camera installed in the patient's home. Patient basic information 14 is information about the patient themselves. Patient basic information 14 includes information such as age, family structure, medical history, medication status, vaccination status, and workplace. Similar case information 16 is information about other patients with the same or similar symptoms as the patient. Similar case information 16 includes information such as timing of response, risk information, and treatment details.
[0012] Risk information 10 may include, in addition to the patient monitoring information 12, basic patient information 14, and similar case information 16 mentioned above, information transmitted by the patient (such as chief complaint, changes in symptoms, and frequency of transmission), information transmitted by the patient's family (such as changes in the patient's symptoms, information about the family's behavior (e.g., working hours and time spent outside), and frequency of transmission), and information indicating the urgency of the patient's condition (such as an indicator judged comprehensively based on the information mentioned above).
[0013] Medical professional information 22 is information about medical professionals who provide home visits. Medical professional information 22 includes, for example, the number of medical professionals, each medical professional's name, experience level, the range of services they can provide (visits they can provide), and their current status. Visit information 24 is information about patients receiving home visits. Visit information 24 includes, for example, the address of the patient to be visited most recently, the scheduled visit (time, etc.), the reservation status of home visits including other patients, the order of visits, and the priority of visits. Each piece of information included in visit information 24 may include information for a specified period. For example, the order of visits may include information on the order in which medical professionals visit patients over a specified period, such as every half day, every day, or every week. Medical procedure information 26 is information about medical procedures performed when treating patients. Medical procedure information 26 includes information on the content of the medical procedure, the time required for the medical procedure, and the medical equipment and medications necessary for the medical procedure.
[0014] Traffic information 32 is information about travel to the patient's home for home visits. Traffic information 32 includes, for example, information such as road congestion and means of transportation. Weather and regional information 34 is information about the weather and region of the patient's home for home visits. Weather and regional information 34 includes, for example, weather information such as the current weather or weather at the time of the visit. Weather and regional information 34 also includes, for example, the spread of a particular virus occurring in the area surrounding the patient's home as regional information. Accepting hospital information 36 is information about hospitals that can accept the patient if, for example, hospitalization is necessary as a result of the medical examination. Accepting hospital information 36 includes, for example, the name of the hospital that can accept the patient, its location, the number of patients that can be accepted, the symptoms of the patients that can be accepted, the times when acceptance is possible, and information about the scheduled doctor in charge.
[0015] [Configuration of the home medical care support system] The home visit medical support device 100 acquires risk information 10, home visit medical information 20, and supplementary information 30, and supports home visit medical care by medical professionals by determining the order in which medical professionals visit patients based on the acquired information. The home visit medical support device 100 performs processes such as a risk information collection function 110, a home visit medical information collection function 120, a supplementary information collection function 130, a visit order determination function 140, a visit order provision function 150, and a history information storage function 160. The home visit medical support device 100 realizes these functions, for example, by a hardware processor executing a program (software) stored in memory (storage unit) not shown.
[0016] A hardware processor refers to circuits such as a CPU (Central Processing Unit), GPU (Graphics Processing Unit), Application Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC), and programmable logic devices (e.g., Simple Programmable Logic Device (SPLD), Complex Programmable Logic Device (CPLD), or Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA)). Instead of storing the program in memory (not shown), the hardware processor may be configured to directly embed the program within its circuitry. In this case, the hardware processor performs its functions by reading and executing the program embedded within the circuitry. A hardware processor is not limited to being configured as a single circuit; it may be composed of multiple independent circuits combined to form a single hardware processor, each implementing a different function. Multiple components may be integrated into a single hardware processor to implement each function. Multiple components may be incorporated into a single dedicated LSI to implement each function. Here, the program (software) may be stored in advance in a storage device that constitutes a storage device such as a semiconductor memory element like ROM, RAM, or flash memory, or a hard disk drive (a storage device equipped with a non-transient storage medium), or it may be stored in a removable storage medium such as a DVD or CD-ROM (a non-transient storage medium), and installed in the storage device of the home medical care support device 100 when the storage medium is mounted in a drive device provided in the home medical care support device 100. The program (software) may also be downloaded in advance from another computer device via a network and installed in the storage device of the home medical care support device 100.The program (software) installed in the storage device included in the home visit medical support device 100 may be transferred to the processing circuit included in the home visit medical support device 100 and executed.
[0017] The risk information collection function 110 acquires and collects risk information 10 (in FIG. 1, patient monitoring information 12, patient basic information 14, similar case information 16) via a network. The risk information collection function 110 controls, for example, a communication unit (not shown) to acquire each piece of information. The risk information collection function 110 collects the risk information 10 by storing each acquired piece of information in a storage unit (not shown). The storage unit (not shown) is realized by, for example, a semiconductor memory element such as a ROM (Read Only Memory), a RAM (Random Access Memory), or a flash memory, a hard disk drive (HDD), an optical disk, or the like. The risk information collection function 110 is an example of a "risk information collection unit".
[0018] The home visit medical information collection function 120 acquires and collects home visit medical information 20 (in FIG. 1, medical staff information 22, visit information 24, medical act information 26) via a network. The home visit medical information collection function 120 controls, for example, a communication unit (not shown) to acquire each piece of information. The home visit medical information collection function 120 collects the home visit medical information 20 by storing each acquired piece of information in a storage unit (not shown). The storage unit (not shown) in which the home visit medical information collection function 120 collects the home visit medical information 20 may be the same as or different from the storage unit (not shown) in which the risk information collection function 110 collects the risk information 10. The home visit medical information collection function 120 is an example of a "home visit medical information collection unit".
[0019] The supplementary information collection function 130 acquires and collects the supplementary information 30 (in FIG. 1, traffic information 32, weather / region information 34, receiving hospital information 36) via the network. The supplementary information collection function 130 controls, for example, a communication unit (not shown) to acquire each piece of information. The supplementary information collection function 130 collects the supplementary information 30 by storing each acquired piece of information in a storage unit (not shown). The storage unit (not shown) in which the supplementary information collection function 130 collects the supplementary information 30 may be the same as or different from the storage unit (not shown) in which the risk information collection function 110 collects the risk information 10 and the storage unit (not shown) in which the home visit medical information collection function 120 collects the home visit medical information 20. The supplementary information collection function 130 is an example of a "supplementary information collection unit".
[0020] The visit order determination function 140 determines the visit order in which medical staff visit patients based on each of the risk information 10 collected by the risk information collection function 110 and the home visit medical information 20 collected by the home visit medical information collection function 120. The visit order determination function 140 may determine the visit order including the supplementary information 30 collected by the supplementary information collection function 130. When determining the visit order, the visit order determination function 140 may refer to the visit order history information stored in the history information storage function 160. At this time, the visit order determination function 140 may use, for example, a search function for similar visit orders learned using a function based on AI (Artificial Intelligence).
[0021] The visit order determination function 140 initiates a process to determine the visit order, either manually or automatically, and determines or updates the visit order. More specifically, the visit order determination function 140 initiates a process to determine the visit order and determines (updates) the visit order when a manual request is made, such as when a medical professional about to start a home visit requests the provision of a visit order, or when a person in charge of the operating company that operates and manages the home visit support system, including the home visit support device 100, requests an update to the visit order. The visit order determination function 140 also initiates a process to determine the visit order automatically and determines (updates) the visit order when it determines that the urgency of medical care for the patient has increased or the priority of the visit has increased, such as when the patient monitoring information 12 collected by the risk information collection function 110 confirms a sudden change in the patient's condition, and the visit order needs to be updated. The visit order determination function 140 determines (updates) the visit order based on the latest risk information 10 and home visit information 20 (which may also include the latest supplementary information 30).
[0022] The visit order determination function 140 outputs information representing the determined (updated) visit order (hereinafter referred to as "visit order information") to the visit order provision function 150. Furthermore, the visit order determination function 140 outputs the visit order information to the history information storage function 160. The visit order determination function 140 may store the visit order information in a storage unit not shown and notify the visit order provision function 150 and the history information storage function 160 of this. The storage unit not shown in which the visit order determination function 140 stores the visit order information may be the same as, or different from, the storage unit not shown in which the risk information collection function 110 collects risk information 10, the storage unit not shown in which the home medical care information collection function 120 collects home medical care information 20, or the storage unit not shown in which the supplementary information collection function 130 collects supplementary information 30. The visit order determination function 140 is an example of a "visit order determination unit".
[0023] The visit order provision function 150 provides the visit order information output by the visit order determination function 140 to healthcare personnel, including at least medical professionals. The visit order provision function 150 controls, for example, a communication unit (not shown) and provides the visit order information to healthcare personnel (which may also be medical professionals) via a network. Here, the communication unit (not shown) controlled by the visit order provision function 150 may be the same as, or different from, the communication units (not shown) controlled by the risk information collection function 110, the home medical care information collection function 120, and the supplementary information collection function 130. This allows, for example, a driver of a vehicle traveling with a doctor or nurse, or a doctor or nurse performing home medical care, to confirm the order in which they will perform home medical care based on the visit order information. Examples of devices that the visit order provision function 150 uses to provide visit order information via a network include, for example, a portable terminal device carried by healthcare personnel or medical professionals to use the home medical care support device 100, or a navigation device installed in a vehicle. The mobile terminal device is, for example, a mobile terminal that combines the functions of a mobile phone using an existing mobile communication network with the functions of a personal digital assistant (PDA), such as a smartphone or tablet. When the mobile terminal device or navigation device receives visit sequence information from the home medical care support device 100, it displays the visit sequence information provided by the information by, for example, displaying it on the display device of each device. At this time, the mobile terminal device or navigation device may also display the visit sequence information by superimposing the visit sequence information onto its own map information and displaying it on the display device. The visit sequence provision function 150 provides the updated latest visit sequence information to the mobile terminal device carried by the medical professional who requested the visit sequence update, or to the navigation device of the vehicle they are riding in, when the visit sequence determination function 140 updates the visit sequence in response to a manual request from a medical professional. The visit sequence provision function 150 may also provide the latest visit sequence information in response to requests from other medical professionals. The visit sequence provision function 150 is an example of a "visit sequence provision unit".
[0024] The history information storage function 160 stores the visit order information output by the visit order determination function 140. The history information storage function 160 stores (accumulates) past history information in the visit order information (hereinafter referred to as "history information") as information referenced when determining the visit order (so-called know-how). When the visit order determination function 140 outputs the visit order information, the history information storage function 160 stores the risk information 10 and visit medical information 20 used to determine the visit order expressed in this visit order information in association with it. If the visit order determination function 140 has determined the visit order including supplementary information 30, the history information storage function 160 also stores the supplementary information 30 in association with it. At this time, the history information storage function 160 may also store (accumulate) information such as the possibility of a sudden change in the patient's condition, which has been learned using an AI function, for example. Figure 1 schematically shows the memory unit for which the history information storage function 160 stores (accumulates) history information. This memory unit may be the same as, or different from, the memory unit (not shown) in which the risk information collection function 110 collects risk information 10, the memory unit (not shown) in which the home visit medical information collection function 120 collects home visit medical information 20, the memory unit (not shown) in which the supplementary information collection function 130 collects supplementary information 30, or the memory unit (not shown) in which the visit order determination function 140 stores visit order information. The history information storage function 160 is an example of a "history information storage unit".
[0025] [Processing by the home medical care support device] Next, the operation of the home medical care support device 100 in its usage environment will be described. Figure 2 is a flowchart showing an example of the processing flow in the home medical care support device 100 according to this embodiment. Figure 2 shows an example of when the home medical care support device 100 determines the order of visits for a specific medical professional (hereinafter referred to as "medical professional A"). In the following description, we will assume that the system determines the order in which medical professional A visits patients on a given day. The flowchart shown in Figure 2 is an example of when the home medical care support device 100 determines (updates) the order of visits in response to a manual request from medical professional A.
[0026] In the process of determining the order of visits in the home medical care support device 100, control rules for determining the order of visits are predetermined (step S100). The control rules define conditions such as the risk to the patient receiving home medical care, the route taken by the medical professional to visit the patient, the type of disease the patient has, and the number of patients to be visited. Regarding the risk to the patient receiving home medical care, for example, conditions are defined to prioritize home visits for patients whose risk has increased, such as those whose condition has suddenly changed. Regarding the route taken by the medical professional to visit the patient, for example, conditions are defined to determine an efficient route that shortens the travel distance, that is, a route that increases the efficiency of visiting patients, so that medical professionals do not have to return the same route when visiting multiple patients or visit multiple patients located far apart. Regarding the route taken by the medical professional to visit the patient, for example, conditions may be defined to determine a route that makes it easy to return to the previous visit location (revisit), considering that the patient's condition is likely to change suddenly immediately after the completion of a home visit. Regarding the types of illnesses patients suffer from, for example, conditions are defined to determine efficient routes so that the same healthcare professional visits patients with similar illnesses or illnesses that can be treated using similar medical equipment and medications, rather than having to carry many different medical devices and medications to visit patients with different illnesses. Regarding the number of patients visited, for example, conditions are defined to determine efficient routes so that the number of visits per day does not exceed the limit for healthcare professionals, taking into account the time required for treatment depending on the type of illness the patient has, as well as the travel time of the healthcare professional.
[0027] Next, the home visit support device 100 displays a list of the current visit order for healthcare worker A using the visit order provision function 150 (step S102). This current visit order is determined in advance based on control rules and is the order of patients that healthcare worker A is scheduled to visit today. At this point, the home visit support device 100 accepts a manual request from healthcare worker A to update the visit order (step S104). At this time, the home visit support device 100 may receive a specification from healthcare worker A for the period to update the visit order (e.g., half a day, one day, one week, etc.), or it may determine the update period based on the current time. Here, in order to determine the visit order for healthcare worker A in a given day, the home visit support device 100 may, for example, determine the update period to be one day if the current time is in the morning, and determine the update period to be the afternoon (i.e., half a day) if the current time is in the afternoon, or close to noon even if it is in the morning. Here, we assume that the update period for the visit order is one day.
[0028] In response to a request to update the visit order, the home medical care support device 100 uses its risk information collection function 110 to collect the latest risk information 10 regarding patients that healthcare worker A is scheduled to visit today (step S106). Furthermore, the home medical care support device 100 uses its risk information collection function 110 to collect the latest risk information 10 regarding patients that healthcare worker A is not scheduled to visit today (step S108). When updating the visit order for one day, it may be necessary to visit patients today who are scheduled to be visited on another day, such as tomorrow or the day after. For this reason, the home medical care support device 100 may collect risk information 10 for a predetermined number of days (for example, three days) from today onward in the processing of step S106 and step S108. The home medical care support device 100's visit order determination function 140 then acquires each of the collected risk information 10.
[0029] Figure 3 shows an example of risk information 10 collected by the home medical care support device 100 according to the embodiment. Figure 3 shows a list of risk information 10 for patients in charge of medical professional A (hereinafter referred to as the "risk information list"), which is collected by the processing of steps S106 and S108 in the home medical care support device 100 and acquired and compiled by the visit order determination function 140. The risk information list is information that associates, for example, the patient's name, age, family structure, vaccination status, monitoring information, and patient urgency with the patient's name in charge of medical professional A. The patient's name includes visit flag information indicating whether or not medical professional A is scheduled to visit today. The visit flag information shows "TODAY" if medical professional A is scheduled to visit today. Age is information that represents the actual age of the patient and an index (risk) corresponding to that age. The higher the numerical value of the age risk, the higher the risk. Family structure is information that represents the family members living with the patient and the risk corresponding to that family structure. Family structure risk also indicates a higher risk the higher the numerical value. Vaccination status is information that represents the number of times a vaccine has been administered and the risk associated with that number of vaccinations. Vaccination status risk also indicates a higher risk the higher the numerical value. Monitoring information is information that represents the actual values of the information contained in patient monitoring information 12 and the risk based on that information. Figure 3 shows the actual values of body temperature, blood oxygen saturation (SpO2), and patient movement information contained in patient monitoring information 12. Furthermore, Figure 3 shows an example of a case where there may be a problem with the patient's movement, for example, when patient monitoring information 12 is associated with links to videos and images taken by cameras installed in the patient's home. Whether or not there is a problem with the patient's movement based on videos and images taken inside the patient's home may be determined, for example, by applying image processing technology to the videos and images. Healthcare professionals can determine whether or not there is a problem with the patient's movement by checking the videos and images associated by the links. Monitoring information risk also indicates a higher risk the higher the numerical value.The actual values and risks of the monitoring information are updated sequentially each time the risk information collection function 110 collects patient monitoring information 12. Patient urgency is information based on a comprehensive assessment of the information included in the risk information list. Patient urgency may also be information based on a assessment that includes, for example, the risk information 10 of other patients with the same or similar symptoms as the patient, and the changes expected between 24 and 48 hours later. A higher value for patient urgency indicates a higher level of urgency, such as the need for priority home visits. Patient urgency is updated sequentially each time the monitoring information is updated. Patient urgency may be set to a higher value for a predetermined period, considering that there is a higher possibility of a sudden change in the patient's condition immediately after the completion of a home visit.
[0030] The risk information list may include various types of information, not limited to those shown in Figure 3, such as patient monitoring information 12, basic patient information 14, and similar case information 16. Furthermore, the risk information list may include information to introduce hospitals that can accept the patient in advance, for example, based on the receiving hospital information 36 included in supplementary information 30. By referring to this information, healthcare professionals can take proactive measures to avoid exceeding the daily visit limit, that is, they can reduce the burden of home visits.
[0031] Returning to Figure 2, the home medical care support device 100 uses its home medical care information collection function 120 to collect the latest home medical care information 20 regarding healthcare professional A, whose visit order will be determined this time (step S110). Furthermore, the home medical care support device 100 uses its home medical care information collection function 120 to collect the latest home medical care information 20 regarding healthcare professionals who are not included (i.e., healthcare professionals other than healthcare professional A) (step S112). Then, the home medical care support device 100's visit order determination function 140 acquires each of the collected home medical care information 20.
[0032] Figure 4 shows an example of home visit medical information 20 collected by the home visit medical support device 100 according to the embodiment. Figure 4 shows a list of home visit medical information 20 of medical professionals (hereinafter referred to as the "home visit medical information list") collected by the processing of step S110 and step S112 in the home visit medical support device 100 and acquired and compiled by the visit order determination function 140. The home visit medical information list is information that associates, for example, the member, the patient in charge, the scheduled visit for today, and the level of responsiveness with the name of the medical professional. The name of the medical professional includes the name of the medical professional, status information that represents the current status of the home visit, and the scheduled time when the current status will change. The status information shows "on house call" when the medical professional is providing medical care at the visit site, "on rounds" when the medical professional is traveling for a home visit, and "off duty" when the medical professional is on a day off. Members are information that represents the medical professional (themselves) and other medical personnel such as nurses and drivers who act together during the home visit. The "Assigned Patients" section represents all patients (patient names) assigned to a healthcare professional. The "Scheduled Visits Today" section shows the patients (patient names) and scheduled visit times that the healthcare professional is scheduled to visit today. If the healthcare professional is currently making a house call, the "Scheduled Visits Today" section will show "Currently on a House Call." The "Scheduled Visits Today" section is updated sequentially as the medical treatment progresses. For example, when the current house call is completed, the scheduled time for the next patient's visit will be updated. The "Responsiveness" section is based on the assessment of whether the healthcare professional can accommodate changes to the current house call schedule. The "Responsiveness" section represents flexibility, for example, whether or not they can accommodate a changed schedule. The "Responsiveness" section is determined by considering factors such as the healthcare professional's experience level and the medical equipment and medications they currently possess or are expected to possess for the house call. A higher "Responsiveness" value indicates a higher probability of being able to accommodate a changed schedule (higher flexibility). The response level is updated when the current home visit is completed, taking into account the time scheduled for the next patient visit (for example, based on the difference in scheduled visit times).The level of response may be determined by considering the risks and tendencies associated with visiting the patient, such as the health condition of the healthcare worker (the individual) or team member, the type of illness the patient being visited has (for example, whether or not it is a contagious disease), and the risk information included in the risk information list shown in Figure 3 (for example, the risk of vaccination status).
[0033] The list of home visit medical information may include various types of information, not limited to those shown in Figure 4, such as medical professional information 22, visit information 24, and medical procedure information 26. For example, the list of home visit medical information may include information classifying medical professionals who primarily specialize in home visits and medical professionals who primarily provide outpatient care at hospitals, etc., but who are registered as being able to provide home visits in emergencies (hereinafter referred to as "secondary medical professionals"). If this information is included, for example, if a particular medical professional is approaching their visit limit, or if a home visit by the assigned medical professional is taking longer than expected for some reason, or if a patient's condition suddenly changes, it becomes possible to contact a secondary medical professional to have them perform the home visit.
[0034] Returning to Figure 2, the home medical care support device 100 collects the latest supplemental information 30 related to the current visit schedule using the supplemental information collection function 130 (step S114). Then, the home medical care support device 100's visit order determination function 140 acquires the collected supplemental information 30. Furthermore, the home medical care support device 100's visit order determination function 140 acquires the history of past visit orders (history information) from the history information storage function 160 (step S116). The home medical care support device 100 may omit the process in step S116 if, for example, there is no relevant history information of past visit orders, or if the patient to be visited is a newly added patient.
[0035] Figure 5 shows an example of supplementary information 30 collected by the home medical care support device 100 according to the embodiment. Figure 5 shows a list of supplementary information 30 related to the current home medical care (hereinafter referred to as the "supplementary information list") compiled by the home medical care support device 100, which combines the supplementary information 30 collected by the processing in step S114 and the history information obtained by the processing in step S116, as compiled by the home visit order determination function 140. The supplementary information list is, for example, information that associates classification, supplementary information, and risk addition coefficient. The classification is information that represents the classification of the information represented by the supplementary information 30. In the classification, "traffic information" is shown when the information represented in the supplementary information list is based on traffic information 32, "weather information" or "regional information" is shown when the information is based on weather / regional information 34, and "receiving hospital information" is shown when the information is based on receiving hospital information 36. The supplementary information is the content of the information contained in the supplementary information 30. Figure 5 shows an example of a situation in "Transportation Information" where transportation risk may affect the home visits of healthcare professional A, and illustrates, for example, the case where a link to map information for checking transportation risk is associated with it. Information related to supplemental information 30 included in the supplemental information list is updated sequentially as supplemental information 30 is updated. The risk addition coefficient is information that represents the coefficient added when calculating each risk included in the risk information list shown in Figure 3. The risk addition coefficient is a coefficient determined based on acquired historical information. The risk addition coefficient may be updated sequentially depending on the patient's condition and the status of the healthcare professional's home visits.
[0036] The supplementary information list may include not only those shown in Figure 5, but also various other information such as traffic information 32, weather and regional information 34, receiving hospital information 36, and historical information on past visit order.
[0037] Returning to Figure 2, the home medical care support device 100's visit order determination function 140 determines (updates) the visit order based on the respective information (information shown in each list) and the control rules (step S118).
[0038] Figure 6 shows an example of a visit sequence determined by the home medical care support device 100 according to the embodiment. Figure 6 shows a list (hereinafter referred to as the "visit sequence list") summarizing the visit sequence information 142 determined (updated) by the visit sequence determination function 140 in step S118 of the home medical care support device 100. The visit sequence list is information that associates, for example, the patient's name, the patient's urgency, the visiting medical professional, and the visit route. The patient's name includes flag information indicating whether or not the patient is a new patient receiving home medical care, that is, a newly added patient. The flag information shows "NEW" if the patient is a new patient receiving home medical care. Figure 6 shows a case where the flag information "NEW" is shown, indicating that the patient named "Patient B" is a new patient receiving home medical care (receiving home medical care from medical professional C, whose name is "Medical Professional C"). Here, the patient who is newly receiving home-visit medical care (Patient name = Patient B), indicated by the "NEW" flag, is a patient who, in the home-visit medical care information list shown in Figure 4, is included in the list of patients assigned to healthcare professional C (Name = Healthcare Professional C), but is not included in the list of patients scheduled to visit today. In other words, the patient who is newly receiving home-visit medical care (Patient name = Patient B) was originally scheduled to be visited by healthcare professional C on another day, but for some reason the patient's urgency level increased, making a visit today necessary. The patient urgency level is information that represents the same content as the patient urgency level included in the risk information list shown in Figure 3. The visiting healthcare professional information represents the healthcare professional (Healthcare professional name) who will visit the patient, the scheduled date and time of the visit, and the level of response from healthcare professionals other than the scheduled healthcare professional. The scheduled date and time will show "On a house call" if the healthcare professional is providing medical care at the patient's location, and if the scheduled date and time change, both the original and revised dates and times will be shown. Figure 6 shows a situation where medical professional A (named "Medical Professional A") is treating patient H, and the scheduled visit time for medical professional C (named "Medical Professional C") has been changed. If the scheduled visit time changes, the patient affected may be contacted or notified.Contacting or notifying patients may, for example, be done by sending information to the patient's mobile device indicating a change in the scheduled visit time. The level of availability is similar to the level of availability included in the home visit information list shown in Figure 4, but is information that summarizes the medical professionals who are available to provide care to the patient. The level of availability may show all medical professionals who are available to provide care to the patient, or it may show priority medical professionals and backup medical professionals separately. Figure 6 shows a case where medical professionals A (name = medical professional A) and medical professional C (name = medical professional C) are both available to provide care to a patient who has newly started receiving home visits (patient name = patient B). In Figure 6, because medical professional C has a high level of availability, medical professional C is selected as the medical professional to visit patient B, and their name is shown as the medical professional scheduled to visit. If, after receiving visit sequence information from the home visit support device 100, healthcare worker C becomes unable to visit patient B for any reason, they can change their response level themselves so that they are no longer the healthcare worker scheduled to visit. If healthcare worker C changes their response level themselves, the healthcare workers affected by this change (in Figure 6, healthcare worker A (name = medical worker A)) may be notified. The visit route is information representing the path (route) that a healthcare worker will take when visiting the patient from their current location. Figure 6 shows a case where a link to map information for checking the visit route is associated with the information.
[0039] The list of visit sequences may include not only those shown in Figure 6, but also various other pieces of information about patients receiving home-visit medical care and healthcare professionals, based on the list of risk information shown in Figure 3, the list of home-visit medical care information shown in Figure 4, and the list of supplementary information shown in Figure 5.
[0040] Returning to Figure 2, the home medical care support device 100, using the visit sequence provision function 150, displays a list of determined (updated) visit sequences to healthcare worker A who has received a manual request to update the visit sequence (step S120). At this time, the home medical care support device 100 extracts visit sequence information relevant to healthcare worker A from the visit sequence list shown in Figure 6 and provides the extracted visit sequence information to healthcare worker A. At this time, the home medical care support device 100 may also provide healthcare worker A with visit sequence information for a period specified by healthcare worker A, or a period determined based on the current time. The home medical care support device 100 may also display the visit sequence before the update, that is, the list of visit sequences displayed in step S102, and the list of visit sequences updated in step S118, together so that healthcare worker A can confirm the changes in the visit sequence.
[0041] Next, the home medical care support device 100 saves the updated visit sequence (new visit sequence information) from step S118 as history information using the history information saving function 160 (step S122). Subsequently, the home medical care support device 100 may notify related systems, such as the regional collaboration system and other home medical care support systems including other home medical care support devices 100, that new history information has been saved, in order to share and provide feedback on the new history information.
[0042] In this way, the home visit medical support device 100 collects the latest risk information 10, home visit medical information 20, and supplementary information 30 in response to a manual request from healthcare worker A, and retrieves historical information on past visit sequences as needed to determine (update) healthcare worker A's visit sequence. The home visit medical support device 100 then provides healthcare worker A with the determined (updated) visit sequence (visit sequence information). This allows healthcare worker A to confirm the determined (updated) visit sequence and perform home visits.
[0043] [Another processing method for home-visit medical care support devices] The flowchart in Figure 2 illustrates an example of how the home medical care support device 100 determines (updates) the order of visits in response to a manual request from medical professional A. However, the home medical care support device 100 may also initiate a process to automatically determine the order of visits. Figure 7 is a flowchart illustrating another example of the processing flow in the home medical care support device 100 according to this embodiment. Figure 7 shows an example of how the home medical care support device 100 automatically determines (updates) the order of visits for a specific medical professional (medical professional A), similar to the flowchart in Figure 2. In the following explanation, as in the flowchart in Figure 2, we will assume that the order of visits for patients by medical professional A on a given day is determined. In the flowchart in Figure 7, the process of step S104 in the flowchart in Figure 2 is replaced by the process of step S204. In other words, in the flowchart in Figure 7, the processes of steps S100 and S102 and steps S106 to S122 are the same as the corresponding processes in the flowchart in Figure 2. Therefore, in the following explanation, a further explanation of the same processes as in the flowchart in Figure 2 will be omitted.
[0044] In step S102, the home medical care support device 100 displays a list of the current visit order for healthcare worker A. If the visit order determination function 140 confirms that the patient's urgency has increased (for example, if the patient's urgency has increased for patient B, as shown in the flowchart in Figure 2), it determines that an update to the visit order is necessary (step S204). In this case, the home medical care support device 100 assumes it has received a request to update the visit order. For example, the home medical care support device 100 assumes it has received a manual request to update the visit order from healthcare worker A, as shown in the flowchart in Figure 2. Then, the home medical care support device 100 performs the processes in steps S106 to S122 in response to the received request to update the visit order. Here, when the home medical care support device 100 displays a list of the visit order determined (updated) in step S120, it may notify healthcare worker A that the visit order has been updated. This is because, when healthcare worker A manually requests an update to the visit order, they are aware that the visit order will be updated, whereas they are not aware in advance that the visit order will be updated automatically.
[0045] In this way, when the home visit medical support device 100 determines that an update to the visit order is necessary, it accepts the request to update the visit order, collects the latest risk information 10, home visit medical information 20, and supplementary information 30, and retrieves historical information of past visit orders as needed to determine (update) the visit order for healthcare worker A. The home visit medical support device 100 then provides the determined (updated) visit order (visit order information) to healthcare worker A. As a result, healthcare worker A can confirm from the determined (updated) visit order that the patient's condition has suddenly changed and take action to visit the patient to provide medical treatment.
[0046] As described above, in each embodiment of the home visit support device, based on the collected risk information 10, home visit information 20, and supplementary information 30, the visit order of medical professionals (including medical personnel) is determined (updated) as necessary, including information on the history of past visit orders. In other words, in each embodiment of the home visit support device, an appropriate visit order can be determined (updated) based on the patient's risk and the status of the home visit. The home visit support device in each embodiment then provides (notifies) the medical professionals (including medical personnel) performing the home visit with visit order information representing the determined (updated) visit order. This allows the home visit support device in each embodiment to support medical professionals (including medical personnel) in efficiently performing home visits. In other words, medical professionals (including medical personnel) using the home visit support device in each embodiment can confirm the determined (updated) visit order and perform home visits efficiently. In this way, the home visit support device in each embodiment supports home visits.
[0047] In the embodiments described above, we explained the case in which the home visit support device determines the order in which medical professionals (including healthcare personnel) visit patients on a given day. However, as mentioned above, the visit order may include information for a predetermined period, such as every half-day, every day, or every week. For this reason, the home visit support device may determine the order in which medical professionals (including healthcare personnel) visit patients on a predetermined period. In this case, the operation and processing of the home visit support device should be equivalent to the operation and processing of the home visit support device in the embodiments described above. Therefore, a detailed explanation of the operation and processing of the home visit support device in this case will be omitted.
[0048] In the embodiments described above, the home medical care support device was explained using the example of a case where it is implemented on a server device on a network. However, this is merely an example, and the home medical care support device, or the functions it implements, may be implemented, for example, as a medical management system installed by a hospital, or as a device or function installed by an operating company that operates and manages the home medical care support system. In this case, the functional configuration, operation, and processing of the home medical care support device should be equivalent to those of the home medical care support device in the embodiments described above. Therefore, a detailed explanation of the functional configuration, operation, and processing of the home medical care support device or its functions in this case will be omitted.
[0049] The embodiments described above can be expressed as follows. Equipped with processing circuitry, The aforementioned processing circuit is We collect risk information, including information about the condition of multiple patients who are eligible for home-visit medical care. We collect home visit medical information, including information about healthcare professionals who visit the aforementioned patients. Based on the aforementioned risk information and the aforementioned home visit information, the order in which the medical professionals will visit the patients is determined. The information representing the order of visits is provided to healthcare personnel, including at least the healthcare worker. Visiting medical care support device.
[0050] According to at least one embodiment described above, a home medical care support device can be realized that can determine an appropriate visit order based on the patient's risk and the circumstances of the home medical care, by having a risk information collection unit (110) that collects risk information (10) including information on the condition of multiple patients who are the target of home medical care, a home medical care information collection unit (120) that collects home medical care information (20) including information on medical professionals who visit the patients, a visit order determination unit (140) that determines the order in which the medical professionals visit the patients based on the risk information (10) and the home medical care information (20), and a visit order provision unit (150) that provides information representing the visit order to medical personnel, including at least the medical professionals.
[0051] While several embodiments have been described, these embodiments are presented as examples only and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention. These embodiments can be carried out in a variety of other forms, and various omissions, substitutions, and modifications can be made without departing from the spirit of the invention. These embodiments and their variations are included in the scope and spirit of the invention, as well as in the claims and their equivalents. [Explanation of symbols]
[0052] 100... Home medical care support device, 110... Risk information collection function, 120... Home medical care information collection function, 130... Supplementary information collection function, 140... Visit order determination function, 142... Visit order information, 150... Visit order provision function, 160... History information storage function, 10... Risk information, 12... Patient monitoring information, 14... Basic patient information, 16... Similar case information, 20... Home medical care information, 22... Healthcare worker information, 24... Visit information, 26... Medical procedure information, 30... Supplementary information, 32... Traffic information, 34... Weather / regional information, 36... Receiving hospital information
Claims
1. A risk information collection unit collects risk information, including information about the condition of multiple patients who are eligible for home-visit medical care, A home visit medical information collection unit collects home visit medical information, including information about medical professionals who visit the aforementioned patients. A visit order determination unit that determines the order in which the medical professionals will visit the patient based on the risk information and the home visit information, A visit order provision unit provides information representing the visit order to medical personnel, including at least the medical professionals; Equipped with, When the visit order determination unit receives a request to update the visit order corresponding to any of the patients, it updates the visit order based on the latest risk information collected by the risk information collection unit after the request, and the latest home medical care information collected by the home medical care information collection unit after the request. The visit order provision unit provides the medical personnel with information representing the updated visit order. Visiting medical care support device.
2. The visit order determination unit determines the visit order so that patients with higher risk are visited with priority. The home medical care support device according to claim 1.
3. The visit order determination unit determines the visit order in such a way that it increases the efficiency of visiting the patients. A home medical care support device according to claim 1 or claim 2.
4. The system further comprises a supplementary information collection unit that collects supplementary information that may affect the patient's visit, The visit order determination unit further determines the visit order based on the latest supplemental information. A home medical care support device according to any one of claims 1 to 3.
5. The system further includes a history information storage unit that stores historical information of past visit sequences in association with the risk information and visit medical information at the time the visit sequence was determined, The visit order determination unit further determines the visit order based on the history information. A home medical care support device according to any one of claims 1 to 4.
6. There are multiple healthcare professionals, The visit order determination unit determines the visit order for each of the multiple medical professionals based on the risk information and the visit medical information for each of the medical professionals. The visit order provision unit provides information representing the relevant visit order for each of the medical professionals included in the visit order. A home medical care support device according to any one of claims 1 to 5.
7. The aforementioned home visit medical information includes information corresponding to the period during which the medical professional provides the aforementioned home visit medical care. The visit order determination unit determines the visit order during the period. A home medical care support device according to any one of claims 1 to 6.
8. The aforementioned period may be half a day, a full day, or a week. The visit order determination unit determines the visit order for the specified period, or the period determined based on the current time. The home medical care support device according to claim 7.
9. Computers We collect risk information, including information about the condition of multiple patients who are eligible for home-visit medical care. We collect home visit medical information, including information about healthcare professionals who visit the aforementioned patients. Based on the aforementioned risk information and the aforementioned home visit information, the order in which the medical professionals will visit the patients is determined. The information representing the order of visits is provided to healthcare personnel, including at least the healthcare worker. When determining the order of visits, if an update to the order of visits corresponding to any of the patients is requested, the order of visits shall be updated based on the latest risk information and the latest home visit information collected after the request. Provide the medical personnel with updated information representing the aforementioned visit order. Home visit medical support method.
10. On the computer, We collect risk information, including information about the condition of multiple patients who are eligible for home visits. Collect home visit medical information, including information about the healthcare professionals who visit the aforementioned patient. Based on the aforementioned risk information and the aforementioned home visit information, the order in which the medical professionals will visit the patients will be determined. The information representing the order of visits is provided to medical personnel, including at least the medical professionals. When determining the order of visits, if an update to the order of visits corresponding to any of the patients is requested, the order of visits will be updated based on the latest risk information and the latest home visit information collected after the request. The medical personnel are provided with the updated information representing the order of visits. program.