Automated ICU Lab Risk Notification System
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Solution Overview
Problem
Physicians often fail to recognize clinically probative patterns in diverse laboratory test results due to the discrete and manual nature of specimen collection and processing, leading to difficulties in collating results and assigning meaningful dates to medical conclusions in ICU settings.
Innovation Solution
A computer-based system that performs risk level assessments for clinical conditions by storing and analyzing laboratory test results, including hematology and arterial blood gas tests, and displays determined risk levels with assigned timestamps, enabling automated detection of patterns and notification of quantitative risks.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If laboratory tests are performed manually and results are recorded in discrete intervals, then individual test results can be obtained, but physicians fail to recognize clinically probative patterns in diverse laboratory results
Solution Approach 1:
The system merges multiple discrete laboratory test results from different sources and time points into a unified electronic data structure. By consolidating hematology, chemistry, immunology, and other test results into a single integrated dataset with standardized timestamps, the system enables physicians to view comprehensive patient information rather than isolated test values, thereby facilitating pattern recognition across diverse laboratory parameters.
Solution Approach 2:
The system introduces an intermediary processing layer between laboratory test generation and physician interpretation. This intermediary automatically retrieves, validates, timestamps, and organizes laboratory results from multiple sources before presenting them to physicians. The intermediary resolves the complexity of data collation by handling integration, standardization, and presentation, allowing physicians to focus on clinical pattern recognition without being burdened by data management complexity.
2Adaptability or versatility
If laboratory tests are outsourced to external testing laboratories, then specialized testing capabilities are accessed, but results become available at different times and are difficult to collate
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary actions by proactively retrieving and storing laboratory test results as soon as they become available from any source, including external testing laboratories. Rather than waiting for results to be manually entered or requested, the system continuously monitors for new results, automatically retrieves them, and stores them with timestamps in the electronic data structure. This preliminary collection and organization of results eliminates delays in making specialized test results available to physicians.
Solution Approach 2:
The system implements a universal data structure and retrieval mechanism that handles multiple types of laboratory tests from multiple sources through a single integrated interface. The same electronic data structure accommodates hematology, chemistry, immunology, and other test results regardless of whether they originate from internal or external laboratories. This multi-functional approach allows the system to uniformly manage diverse test results, eliminating the need for separate collation processes for different test types or sources.
3Quantity of substance
If multiple laboratory tests are performed over extended periods, then comprehensive patient data is collected, but it becomes difficult to assign meaningful dates to medical conclusions
Solution Approach 1:
The system applies local quality by assigning specific timestamps to each individual laboratory test result within the electronic data structure, while also providing overall time range information for the complete dataset. Each test result retains its precise collection time, allowing the system to preserve the temporal context of individual measurements while presenting comprehensive data spanning extended periods. This localized temporal information enables physicians to understand both the specific timing of individual tests and the overall time frame of the patient's clinical course.
Data Source
AI summary
In a risk level assessment method for a plurality of clinical conditions as follows, a set of laboratory test results (32) are stored with time stamps for a patient, including at least one hematology test result and at least one arterial blood gas (ABG) test result. For each clinical condition, a risk level is determined for the clinical condition based on a clinical condition-specific sub-set of the stored set of laboratory test results. This determination is made conditional on the stored clinical condition-specific sub-set of laboratory test results being sufficient to determine the risk level. A time stamp is assigned to each determined risk level based on the time stamps for the laboratory test results of the clinical condition-specific sub-set of laboratory test results. A display device (44, 46) displays the determined risk level and the assigned time stamp for each clinical condition whose determined risk level satisfies a display criterion.