Remote Operator Availability Timeline for Medical Imaging Workflow
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Local operators in medical imaging are unaware of the remote operator's schedule, leading to delays when requesting assistance, as they cannot determine if the remote operator is available, causing inefficiencies in workflow.
Innovation Solution
A system that mirrors the remote operator's schedule to the local operator, providing a timeline with availability status, allowing local operators to adjust their schedules based on the remote operator's availability and request assistance through a graphical user interface, while maintaining patient privacy by simplifying the schedule information.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Loss of time
If the remote operator's detailed schedule is shared with local operators, then local operators can plan procedures efficiently and reduce delays, but patient privacy may be compromised through excessive information sharing
Solution Approach 1:
The system extracts only the essential availability information (engaged/unengaged status and time slots) from the remote operator's complete schedule, displaying it to local operators without revealing detailed patient information or specific procedure types, thus resolving the contradiction between providing useful scheduling information and protecting patient privacy
Solution Approach 2:
The schedule information displayed to each local operator is customized to show only relevant time slots and engagement status without exposing sensitive details about other patients or procedures, providing locally optimized information quality that balances utility and privacy protection
2Productivity
If the remote operator provides assistance to multiple local operators, then the utilization of remote expertise increases, but the complexity of managing multiple schedules and availability tracking increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system merges multiple local operators' schedule requests into a single centralized timeline view that displays the remote operator's availability across all bays, allowing one remote operator to efficiently manage assistance to multiple local operators without the complexity of separate tracking systems
Solution Approach 2:
The timeline display system serves multiple functions simultaneously: it shows engagement status, indicates available time slots, tracks multiple local operators' needs, and coordinates assistance allocation, thereby managing multi-operator complexity through a universal interface
3Ease of operation
If local operators can request assistance at any time, then the responsiveness to imaging needs improves, but delays occur when the remote operator is unavailable
Solution Approach 1:
Local operators can view the remote operator's availability timeline in advance and plan their assistance requests accordingly, submitting requests during known available time slots rather than attempting to request help during already-engaged periods, thereby reducing waiting time while maintaining ease of request submission
Data Source
AI summary
An apparatus provides assistance by a remote operator to a local operator of a medical imaging device (2) disposed in a medical imaging device bay (3) via a communication link (14) from a remote service center (4) to the medical imaging device bay. The apparatus includes a workstation (12) disposed in the remote service center including at least one workstation display (24). At least one electronic processor (20, 20′) is programmed to: mirror a display (24′) of an imaging device controller (10) of the medical imaging device at the at least one workstation display; present video (17), on the at least one workstation display, of the medical imaging device acquired by a camera (16) disposed in the medical imaging device bay; generate a timeline (30) of a schedule (108) of the remote operator, wherein the generated timeline includes a plurality of time slots (34) and an engagement status (36) of the remote operator for each time slot; and control a display device (24′) in the medical imaging device bay to display the generated timeline.