Mobile App Animates Workflow Changes for Perioperative Staff
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Solution Overview
Problem
Healthcare staff, particularly perioperative staff, face challenges in accessing and managing real-time workflow status information without access to workstations or laptops, and existing solutions do not provide a mobile application for inputting or updating status information effectively.
Innovation Solution
A mobile application that animates change information on a smartphone or tablet, allowing staff to receive and display workflow status updates from a central server, enabling just-in-time notification of changes without additional user input, and allowing users to input updates that are propagated through the network.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If staff members use traditional workstations or laptops to access workflow status information, then they can access real-time updates, but they lack mobility and cannot access information while moving between locations
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements a mobile application that creates a portable copy of the workflow management system functionality. The mobile app replicates the core capabilities of the desktop workstation, allowing staff to access workflow status information, receive notifications, and interact with the system using mobile devices such as smartphones and tablets. This copying approach enables mobility while maintaining full access to workflow information.
2Reliability
If the system provides continuous real-time updates to all staff members, then everyone stays informed of changes, but it consumes excessive network bandwidth and server resources
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements selective notification delivery where change information is tailored to each user's specific needs, role, and current context. Instead of broadcasting all changes to all users, the system filters and delivers only relevant notifications to appropriate users based on their responsibilities and current tasks. This local quality approach ensures reliability of information delivery while minimizing network bandwidth consumption by sending only necessary updates.
Solution Approach 2:
The system implements on-demand retrieval of change information where mobile devices request updates only when needed rather than receiving continuous streams. The server provides change information selectively based on user requests and priorities, delivering partial updates containing only the most relevant changes rather than complete data sets. This approach maintains information reliability while significantly reducing network bandwidth consumption.
3Loss of information
If the mobile application displays all workflow changes to users, then users have complete information, but it creates information overload and makes it difficult to identify relevant changes
Solution Approach 1:
The mobile application implements role-based and context-aware filtering of change information. Different user roles (e.g., surgeons, nurses, administrators) receive customized views of workflow changes relevant to their specific responsibilities. The system also considers current context such as active tasks and location to prioritize and filter notifications. This ensures users receive complete relevant information without being overwhelmed by unrelated changes, reducing presentation complexity while maintaining information completeness.
4Reliability
If staff members frequently check for workflow updates manually, then they stay informed of changes, but it wastes time and reduces productivity
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements an automated feedback mechanism where the mobile application continuously monitors for workflow changes and pushes notifications to users without requiring manual checks. The system establishes bidirectional communication channels between the server and mobile devices, automatically detecting changes and delivering them to appropriate users in real-time. This feedback loop ensures timely information delivery while freeing staff to focus on their primary tasks, thereby improving productivity.
Solution Approach 2:
The system pre-configures notification preferences, filters, and delivery channels for each user before workflow changes occur. Users can set up their notification preferences in advance, and the system prepares delivery mechanisms so that when changes occur, notifications are immediately delivered without requiring user initiation. This preliminary setup ensures timely information delivery while eliminating the need for manual checking, thereby improving staff productivity.
Data Source
AI summary
An embodiment provides a mobile application that animates change information in a way that specifically indicates a change in workflow information for various users. This animation of change information permits users, which are often busy healthcare professionals, to be quickly apprised of relevant changes to workflow status. The mobile application also allows users to communicate change information, e.g., for updating the status of a workflow item, which may then be propagated throughout a network, including mobile devices.