阅读说明：本技术 患者记录自动更新 (Automatic update of patient records ) 是由 A·宾德苏斯 S·丰克-舍夫 H·格雷纳 于 2020-09-29 设计创作，主要内容包括：本发明涉及利用针对患者的实际生命体征数据值自动更新数字患者记录,从而避免护理患者的保健专业人士向数字患者记录中手动输入此类数据值的需要。为此,本申请提供了几种计算机实现的方法,用于以数字形式,例如摄影图像或屏幕捕获的形式捕获此类生命体征数据值,并自动例如使用OCR算法从中提取此类数字图像中捕获的生命体征数据值。还提供了用于实施此类方法的计算机程序产品以及被配置为实施此类方法的电子设备。(The present invention relates to automatically updating a digital patient record with actual vital sign data values for the patient, thereby avoiding the need for healthcare professionals who care for the patient to manually enter such data values into the digital patient record. To this end, the present application provides several computer-implemented methods for capturing such vital sign data values in digital form, e.g. photographic images or screen captures, and automatically extracting therefrom the vital sign data values captured in such digital images, e.g. using OCR algorithms. Computer program products for implementing such methods and electronic devices configured to implement such methods are also provided.)

1. A computer-implemented method (100') of updating patient records in a medical database (15), the method comprising, with a processor device (12, 25) of an electronic device (10, 20):

receiving (109) an image in a display screen (30) of a patient monitoring system showing at least one vital sign data value (33-36) of the patient;

evaluating (113) at least one region of interest in the image comprising one of the vital sign data values to extract the one vital sign data value from the image;

updating (123) the patient record with the extracted at least one vital sign data value; and is

Storing (123) the image in a database such that the image is associated with the updated patient record.

2. The computer-implemented method (100') according to claim 1, further comprising generating (117) an index value of the actual physical state of the patient from the extracted at least one vital sign data value (33-36), and updating the patient record (123) with the generated index value.

3. The computer-implemented method (100') according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the database storing the images is the medical database (15).

4. The computer-implemented method (100') according to any one of claims 1-3, further including:

displaying (115) the extracted at least one vital sign data value (33-36) to a user on a display device;

receiving an authentication command from the user; and is

Updating (123) the patient record with the extracted at least one vital sign data value and storing the image in the medical database and/or the database in response to the received validation command.

5. The computer-implemented method (100') according to any one of claims 1-4, wherein evaluating (113) the image to extract the at least one vital sign data value (33-36) from a region of interest of the image comprises:

identifying a region of interest in the image that includes vital sign data values;

extracting the vital sign data values from the identified region of interest;

matching the vital sign data values to a particular vital sign of the patient by comparing the extracted vital sign data values to a library of expected values of data values for different vital signs; and is

Updating (123) the vital sign records of the vital signs in the patient records that match the extracted vital sign data values with the extracted vital sign data values.

6. The computer-implemented method (100') according to any one of claims 1-5, wherein the image is at least one photographic image or screen capture.

7. The computer-implemented method (100') according to any one of claims 1-6, further including: identification information of a person responsible for generating the image is received (103) and at least one of the stored at least one vital sign data value and the stored image is associated with the received identification information.

8. A computer-implemented method (100) of generating at least one photographic image of a display screen (30) of a patient monitoring system with an electronic client device (20) displaying at least one vital sign data value (33-36) of a patient being monitored by the patient monitoring system, the electronic client device being adapted to access a patient record of the patient, the electronic client device comprising a processor apparatus (25), a camera (23) communicatively coupled to the processor apparatus, a display screen (21) communicatively coupled to the processor apparatus, and a data storage device storing a mask (40) for aligning with a region of interest of the display screen of the patient monitoring system, the method comprising:

retrieving (107) the mask from the data storage device for alignment with the region of interest of the display screen of the patient monitoring system;

displaying, by the camera, the mask as an overlay over a view (30') of the display screen of the patient monitoring device on the display screen of the electronic client device for a user of the electronic client device to align the view with the mask;

receiving (109) a capture command for capturing at least one photographic image of the aligned view with the camera; and is

Providing (111) the captured at least one photographic image to a processor device (12, 25) adapted to update the patient record with a method (100') according to any one of claims 1-7.

9. The computer-implemented method (100) of claim 8, wherein the mask (40) forms part of a library of masks stored in the data storage device that correspond to respective regions of interest of display screens (30) of different patient monitoring systems, the method further comprising:

receiving user input identifying the patient monitoring system; and is

A mask corresponding to the identified patient monitoring system is selected from the library based on the received user input.

10. The computer-implemented method (100) of claim 8, wherein the mask (40) forms part of a library of masks stored in the data storage device that correspond to respective regions of interest of display screens (30) of different patient monitoring systems, the method further comprising:

capturing an identification image of the patient monitoring system with the camera (23);

identifying the patient monitoring system from the captured identifying information; and is

A mask is selected from the library that corresponds to the identified patient monitoring system.

11. The computer-implemented method (100) according to any one of claims 8-10, wherein the mask (40) includes a plurality of visible sections (42), each section corresponding to a region of interest on the display screen (30) of the patient monitoring system that includes a particular vital sign data value (33-36).

12. The computer-implemented method (100) of any of claims 8-11, further comprising executing at least part of the method (100') of any of claims 1-7 on the processor device (25) of the electronic client device (20).

13. A computer program product comprising a computer readable storage medium having computer readable program instructions embodied therein, which, when executed on a processor device (12, 25) of an electronic device (10, 20), cause the processor device to carry out the method (100, 100') according to any one of claims 1-12.

14. An electronic device (10) comprising processor means (12) adapted to perform the method according to any one of claims 1-7.

15. An electronic client device (20) comprising a processor arrangement (25), a camera (23) communicatively coupled to the processor arrangement, a display screen (21) communicatively coupled to the processor arrangement, and a data storage for storing a mask for aligning with a region of interest of a display screen (30) of a patient monitoring system, wherein the processor arrangement is adapted to perform the method according to any one of claims 1-12.

Technical Field

The present invention relates to a computer-implemented method of updating patient records in a medical database with a processor means of an electronic device.

The invention further relates to a computer-implemented method of generating, with a processor arrangement of an electronic client device, an image of a display screen of a patient monitoring system, the image displaying at least one vital sign data value of a patient being monitored by the patient monitoring system.

The invention also relates to a computer program product for implementing such a method on an electronic device.

The invention also relates to an electronic device arranged to implement the method of updating a patient record in a medical database.

The invention further relates to an electronic client device arranged to implement a computer-implemented method of generating an image of a display screen of a patient monitoring system, said image displaying at least one vital sign data value of a patient being monitored by said patient monitoring system.

Background

It is crucial that patients in clinical care (e.g. hospitalized patients) are closely monitored by health care professionals so that any adverse changes in the health of such patients can be detected in a timely manner. For this reason, such health care professionals often utilize a plethora of electronic devices to keep the medical state of their patients up to date. For example, a patient may be permanently or periodically connected to a patient monitoring system that monitors vital signs of the patient, such as temperature, blood pressure, heart rate, (arterial) blood oxygen saturation, blood sugar level, and the like. The healthcare professional would then utilize a portable electronic device that enables the healthcare professional to directly access the patient's medical records, enabling the healthcare professional to easily access the patient's up-to-date medical information when, for example, consulting with the patient. Such portable electronic devices may be special purpose electronic devices or general purpose electronic devices, such as a smart phone or tablet computer having a software program (application) installed thereon, through which a healthcare professional can access a patient's medical records.

In order to keep the medical records of a patient up to date, it is often necessary to periodically update such medical records with vital sign information acquired by a patient monitoring system. In the case where the patient monitoring system is not integrated with a medical records database, which is often the case, a healthcare professional is required to update the patient's medical records, for example, when visiting the patient. Such updates may include, in addition to vital sign data values, the latest score expression of the patient's medical condition (change), e.g., Early Warning Score (EWS), AVPU score, etc. However, this is very cumbersome and time consuming. In addition, manual entry of vital sign data values derived from a display screen of a patient monitoring system into a patient's medical record can present a user error, especially when the healthcare professional is work-intensive. Therefore, there is a need for a more efficient and reliable way to update patient records with such vital sign information.

Disclosure of Invention

The present invention seeks to provide a computer-implemented method of updating patient records in a medical database using a processor means of an electronic device to facilitate a more efficient and reliable way of updating such patient records.

The invention also relates to a computer-implemented method of generating an image of a display screen of a patient monitoring system using a processor device of an electronic client device, said image displaying at least one vital sign data value of a patient being monitored by the patient monitoring system, to facilitate a more efficient and reliable way of updating patient records of such patients.

The invention also relates to a computer program product for implementing such a method on an electronic device.

The invention also relates to an electronic device arranged to implement the method of updating a patient record in a medical database.

The invention further relates to an electronic client device arranged to implement a computer-implemented method of generating an image of a display screen of a patient monitoring system, said image displaying at least one vital sign data value of a patient being monitored by said patient monitoring system.

According to an aspect, there is provided a computer-implemented method of updating patient records in a medical database, the method comprising: utilizing a processor device of an electronic device to: receiving an image of a display screen of a patient monitoring system showing at least one vital sign data value of a patient; evaluating at least one region of interest in the image comprising one of the vital sign data values to extract said one vital sign data value from the image; updating the patient record with the extracted at least one vital sign data value; and storing the image in a database such that the image is associated with the updated patient record.

The present invention is based on the discovery that: vital sign data values captured by a patient monitoring system monitoring a patient may be captured from images of a display screen of the patient monitoring system using a data capture algorithm, such as an optical character recognition algorithm, so that vital sign data values may be automatically acquired rather than having to be manually entered by a healthcare professional, such as a nurse or a clinician. Furthermore, by storing the captured image and the extracted vital sign data values, it may be verified whether the extracted vital sign data values were correctly extracted from the image of the display screen of the patient monitoring system, which may be useful, for example, if a healthcare professional evaluating the patient record has reason to believe that some of the data in the record may be unreliable, e.g., physiologically impossible. The image of the first set of embodiments may be at least one photographic image of a display screen of a patient monitoring system, or alternatively, the second set of embodiments may be a screen capture of a display screen of a patient monitoring system. In case the image is at least one photographic image, the image may be a single photographic image or a (video) stream or a time sequence of photographic images. The latter may be useful, for example, in capturing changes in vital sign data values of a patient. For example, the second set of embodiments may be useful if an electronic client device (such as a smartphone or tablet computer) operated by a healthcare professional temporarily becomes part of a patient monitoring system when the healthcare professional checks or otherwise determines the physical condition of the patient, for example by establishing a communication link between the electronic client device and the patient monitor, so that vital sign information of the patient required by the patient monitor may be displayed on a display screen of the electronic client device (e.g., within an application running on the electronic client device). In such a case, it may not be necessary to capture one or more photographic images of the display screen, but rather a screen capture may be performed in order to capture the displayed vital sign information.

It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that the medical database and the database in which the images are stored may be the same database or two separate databases with appropriate links between patient records. An advantage of separating the two databases may be flexibility in managing data storage and medical data review workflows. Some medical database providers may not allow image storage to be easily implemented, so linking a separate database for the storage to an existing installed library of medical databases may enable rapid upgrade of the medical databases. Furthermore, it may be beneficial to keep the storage resources of the image database (the database in which the images are stored) limited and to have the medical practitioner review the stored images during a predefined period of time, after which all reviewed images may be deleted.

In an embodiment, the computer-implemented method further comprises generating an index value of the actual physical state of the patient from the extracted at least one vital sign data value, and updating the patient record with the generated index value. For example, such an indicator value may be an Early Warning Score (EWS) for the patient.

The computer-implemented method may further comprise: displaying the extracted at least one vital sign data value to a user on a display device; receiving an authentication command from the user; and updating the patient record with the extracted at least one vital sign data value and storing the image in a medical database and/or an image database in response to the received validation command. This ensures that only vital sign data values approved by the user are stored in the patient record.

In a first set of embodiments, as will be explained in more detail below, one or more vital sign data values may be extracted from an image based on a priori knowledge of where in the image a particular vital sign data value is expected. This will typically be the case in the following cases: it is known which patient monitoring systems are being used in a clinical care environment, so that the electronic device evaluating captured images of the display screen of such patient monitoring systems can be pre-configured such that the processor means of the electronic device knows where specific vital sign data values are expected, such as blood pressure values, heart rate values, blood oxygen saturation values, body temperature values, etc. However, in an alternative set of embodiments, evaluating the image to extract vital sign data values from a region of interest of the image may comprise: identifying a region of interest in the image that includes vital sign data values; extracting vital sign data values from the identified region of interest; matching the extracted vital sign data values to a particular vital sign of the patient by comparing the vital sign data values to a library of expected values of data values for different vital signs; and updating, with the extracted vital sign data value, a vital sign record of a vital sign matching the extracted vital sign data value in the patient record. This has the following advantages: the electronic device does not have to rely on such a priori knowledge of what vital sign data values are expected in a specific region of the captured image being evaluated, since the electronic device is instead configured to predict to which specific vital sign the extracted data value may belong based on the actual values of said data values.

In a preferred embodiment, the computer-implemented method further comprises: identification information of a person responsible for generating the image is received and at least one of the stored at least one vital sign data value and the stored image is associated with the received identification information. This can be used, for example, to establish responsibility for uploading specific images to a patient record and vital sign data values extracted from such images. This can be used, for example, to establish whether a particular healthcare professional needs further training because that particular healthcare professional is responsible for uploading the vital sign data values of incorrectly identified patients. This is particularly relevant in such embodiments: data extraction from such images is performed on the same electronic device (e.g., an electronic client device of a healthcare professional) as is used to capture the images, because in such a case, the healthcare professional may be required to approve the vital sign data values extracted from the captured images before updating with the extracted vital sign data values in order to further reduce the risk of entering incorrect data into the patient record. In other words, in such a case, the computer-implemented method may update the patient record with the extracted vital sign data value only upon receiving a user confirmation command indicating the accuracy of the extracted vital sign data value. However, in case such a command is given without legitimacy, for example due to an inconsistency between the actual vital sign data value displayed on the display screen and the vital sign data value extracted by the electronic device, it is possible to determine not only such an inconsistency due to the storage of the captured image together with the vital sign data value extracted from the image, but also who is responsible for allowing the entry of such incorrect data into the patient record by associating the stored vital sign data value and/or the stored image with the identification information of the person.

According to another aspect, there is provided a computer-implemented method of generating at least one photographic image of a display screen of a patient monitoring system, the at least one photographic image displaying at least one vital sign data value of a patient being monitored by the patient monitoring system, with an electronic client device adapted to access a patient record for the patient, the electronic client device comprising a processor apparatus, a camera communicatively coupled to the processor apparatus, a display screen communicatively coupled to the processor apparatus, and a data storage device storing a mask for aligning with a region of interest of the display screen of the patient monitoring system, the method comprising: retrieving a mask from a data storage device for alignment with a region of interest of a display screen of a patient monitoring system; displaying, by the camera, the mask as an overlay over a view of a display screen of a patient monitoring device on the display screen of the electronic client device for alignment of the view with the mask by a user of the electronic client device; receiving a capture command for capturing at least one photographic image of the aligned view with the camera; and providing the captured at least one photographic image to a processor device adapted to update the patient record using the method according to any of the embodiments described herein.

The provision of such a mask configured according to the screen layout of the display screen of the patient monitoring system may advantageously be used to generate an image such that the mask is aligned by a user of the electronic client device with an image displayed on the display screen of the electronic client device that correctly positions one or more vital sign data values of the patient displayed on the display screen of the patient monitoring system. This ensures that the possibility of correctly extracting one or more vital sign data values from the captured image is optimized.

In an embodiment, the mask forms part of a library of masks stored in a data storage device corresponding to respective regions of interest of display screens of different patient monitoring systems, the method further comprising: receiving user input identifying a patient monitoring system; and selecting the mask from the library corresponding to the identified patient monitoring system based on the received user input. This is advantageous, for example, in the following situations: multiple patient monitoring systems may be being used within a clinical care environment such that the provision of a library of masks allows a user of the electronic client device to select an appropriate mask from the library of masks to ensure that vital sign data values of a patient displayed on a display screen of a particular patient monitoring system can be captured.

In an alternative embodiment, the masks form part of a library of masks stored in a data storage device corresponding to respective regions of interest of display screens of different patient monitoring systems, the method further comprising: capturing, with a camera, an identification image of a patient monitoring system; identifying a patient monitoring system from the captured identification image; and, selecting a mask from the library that corresponds to the identified patient monitoring system. In this manner, masks may be automatically selected from the library without user intervention, which may reduce the risk of incorrect selection of masks and further improve the ease of use of the electronic client device by healthcare professionals.

Such a mask may include a plurality of visible sections, each section corresponding to a region of interest on a display screen of the patient monitoring system that includes a particular vital sign data field. This further assists the healthcare professional in aligning the screen view of the image to be captured, as the visible segments can be superimposed with corresponding regions of interest of the display screen of the patient monitoring system in the screen view of the image to be captured on the electronic client device.

In an embodiment, the computer-implemented method further comprises executing at least a portion of any of the herein described embodiments of the computer-implemented method of updating a patient record of a patient described herein on a processor device of an electronic client device. In other words, image capture of a display screen of a patient monitoring system with an electronic client device and data extraction from the captured images may be performed on different electronic devices, e.g., the data extraction portion may be performed on a server hosting a database that holds medical records of patients registered with a clinical care environment, which may be beneficial in reducing the processing load of the electronic client device, e.g., to avoid patient bedside delays. However, this situation has the disadvantages that: verifying data extracted from a captured image before uploading the data into a patient record is not straightforward, as a remote electronic device that would need to perform data extraction of the image would need to return the image and data extracted from the image to an electronic client device for verification by its user. Thus, it may be advantageous for at least part of the computer-implemented method of automatically updating a patient record with vital sign data values extracted from a captured image to be performed by the processor means of the electronic client device as described before, for example, to allow a user of the electronic client device to verify the extracted data values immediately before uploading them into the patient record.

According to yet another aspect, there is provided a computer program product comprising a computer readable storage medium having computer readable program instructions embodied therein, which, when executed on processor means of an electronic device, cause the processor means to carry out the method of any of the embodiments described herein. Such a computer program product, e.g. an application stored on an application server or the like, may be used to configure an electronic device, e.g. a server or an electronic client device, such as a smartphone or a tablet computer, to implement one or more embodiments of the method of the present invention.

According to yet another aspect, an electronic device is provided, comprising processor means adapted to perform the method of updating a patient record in a medical database described herein. To this end, the electronic device may comprise the aforementioned computer program product, for example.

According to yet another aspect, there is provided an electronic client device comprising a processor apparatus, a camera communicatively coupled to the processor apparatus, a display screen communicatively coupled to the processor apparatus, and a data storage device for storing a mask for aligning with a region of interest of the display screen of a patient monitoring system, wherein the processor apparatus is adapted to perform a method of generating a screen capture of the display screen of a patient monitoring system displaying at least one vital sign data value of a patient being monitored by the patient monitoring system. To this end, for example, the electronic client device may comprise the aforementioned computer program product.

Drawings

Embodiments of the invention are described in more detail and by way of non-limiting examples with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 schematically illustrates a flow chart of a typical workflow for a healthcare professional while caring for a patient;

fig. 2 schematically shows a system for updating a patient record according to an embodiment;

fig. 3 schematically shows a view of patient monitoring by a camera of an electronic client device according to an embodiment;

fig. 4 schematically shows a view of patient monitoring by a camera of an electronic client device according to another embodiment;

FIG. 5 schematically illustrates vital sign data acquired with a patient monitor displayed on a display screen of an electronic client device;

FIG. 6 schematically illustrates vital sign data acquired with and extracted from an image of a patient monitor displayed on a display screen of an electronic client device; and

fig. 7 schematically shows a flow chart of a corresponding computer-implemented method according to an exemplary embodiment.

Detailed Description

It should be understood that the drawings are merely schematic and are not drawn to scale. It should also be understood that the same reference numerals are used throughout the figures to indicate the same or similar parts.

Fig. 1 is a flow chart of a typical process or workflow 50 taken by a healthcare professional, such as a nurse or a clinician, for example, in a clinical care environment, such as a hospital, to examine the physical condition of a patient. Such a healthcare professional may interface with a database within the clinical care environment that holds patient records for patients using an electronic client device, such as a smartphone or tablet computer. For example, the electronic client device may have a software program, such as an installed application, that gives a healthcare professional the right to access such patient records. For example, such applications may allow a healthcare professional to assess a patient's medical history, e.g., a history of vital sign data values acquired over time for a patient, visualize trends (e.g., graph shapes, etc.) of such data, and make changes to a patient record, e.g., by updating vital sign data values. The workflow 50 begins at operation 51, e.g., launching an application, after which the healthcare professional provides identification information in operation 53. For example, the healthcare professional logs into the application by entering user credentials, which may be done manually or with the assistance of a device, such as a bar code scanner, with which the healthcare professional's identification badge or the like is scanned in order to retrieve the identification information.

In operation 55, the patient is identified by scanning a wristband or bracelet or the like worn by the patient in order to access the appropriate patient record from a database storing a plurality of such patient records. In operation 57, if the patient is not already connected to a patient monitoring system, the patient may be connected to such a system to monitor the patient's vital signs, and the vital sign data values determined in this way are registered by the healthcare professional, for example by manually entering these vital sign data values in the patient record via an application. The vital sign data values may be supplemented by the healthcare professional with observation information, such as AVPU observations, which may be used to calculate a score indicative of the patient's actual physical condition, such as EWS, in operation 61. Finally, the acquired data, such as vital signs data and EWS, may be validated and stored in the patient record in operation 63, after which the workflow is terminated in operation 65. This workflow 50 may be performed several times a day in order to ensure adequate monitoring of the patient.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the workflow 50 is adapted such that a healthcare professional is no longer required to manually input vital sign data values of the patient for the purpose of, for example, calculating a score indicative of the actual physical condition of the patient (such as EWS). Rather, the data acquired for such calculations are obtained by evaluating an image of a display screen of a patient monitoring system on which vital sign data of the patient is displayed, wherein the vital sign data is extracted from the image, for example by using an optical character recognition algorithm. Since such algorithms are known per se, the composition of such algorithms is not explained in more detail, merely for the sake of brevity. An exemplary infrastructure that can be used for this purpose is schematically illustrated in fig. 2. The electronic device 10 comprises a processor means 12 and a data communication interface 14 under control of the processor means 12. The electronic device 10 is typically communicatively coupled to a database 15 of patient records, which typically includes patient records for patients within a clinical care environment (such as a hospital, etc.) in which a healthcare professional works, and any other databases, through, for example, a data communication interface 14.

The electronic device 10 may also be communicatively coupled to an electronic client device 20 to be used by a healthcare professional as previously described. The electronic client device 20 may include a display screen 21, one or more cameras 23, a processor means 25 and a data communication interface 27. The display screen 21, the one or more cameras 23 and the data communication interface 27 are typically controlled by a processor means 25. The electronic client device 20 typically stores computer programs such as the aforementioned applications stored in a data storage device (not shown), such as a memory or the like. In some embodiments, the data storage device can also include a database suitable for image storage. As will be explained further below, the electronic client device 20 is typically used by a user thereof (e.g., an appropriate healthcare professional) to capture images of a display screen 30 of a patient monitoring system on which vital sign data values of a patient captured by the patient monitoring system are displayed.

In the context of this application, reference is made to a processor arrangement, which is to be understood to include a single processor as well as a group of processors working together. In the case of a single processor, such a processor may include any suitable number of processor cores, e.g., one or more such cores. Where reference is made to a data communications interface, it will be appreciated that this may be a wireless interface as well as a wired interface. In the case of a wireless interface, the wireless data communication interface may deploy any suitable number of wireless communication protocols, such as one or more of WiFi, bluetooth, and the like. Where the electronic device is equipped to handle multiple communication protocols, the skilled person will immediately appreciate that the electronic device may comprise a plurality of data communication interfaces dedicated to a particular one of these communication protocols. In the case of reference to a display screen, it will be appreciated that this may be any suitable type of display screen, such as a CRT screen, an LCD screen, an LED screen, a plasma screen, etc. Such a screen may be a monochrome screen, a color screen, or the like.

In the context of the present application, reference is made to a patient monitoring system, which is to be understood to refer to any number of devices arranged to monitor one or more vital signs of a patient. Non-limiting examples of such patient monitoring systems include vital signs monitors, heart rate monitors, digital thermometers, blood glucose monitors, and the like.

In the context of the present application, reference is made to captured images, it being understood that such images are typically captured in digital form, i.e. as (pixelated) digital images. Further, as explained in more detail elsewhere, such images may be a single image or a stream or time series of images, e.g., a video stream or the like.

It is further noted that while fig. 2 shows an electronic device 10 and an electronic client device 20, it is to be understood that it is equally feasible that aspects of the computer-implemented method of the present invention described in more detail below may be implemented on a single electronic device, such as the electronic client device 20, in which case the electronic device 10 may be omitted and the electronic client device 20 interfaced directly with the database 50 of patient records.

The operation of the electronic client device 20 and, if present, the electronic device 10 will be explained in more detail with the aid of fig. 3-7. Fig. 3 shows two different computer-implemented methods 100 and 100', i.e. methods to be performed by an electronic device comprising processor means, such as the electronic device 10 or the electronic client device 20. In an embodiment, the computer-implemented method 100 is performed on the electronic client device 20 and the computer-implemented method 100 'is performed on the electronic device 10, although in alternative embodiments, at least some of the operations of the computer-implemented method 100' are performed on the electronic client device 20. In certain embodiments, all of the operations of the computer-implemented method 100' are performed on the electronic client device 20, in which case the electronic device 10 may not be present or used. The computer-implemented methods 100 and 100' may form part of the functionality of a software product, such as an application installed on the electronic client device 20 and/or the electronic device 10. In certain embodiments, at least the computer-implemented method 100, and optionally also the computer-implemented method 100', forms part of a patient monitoring application by which a healthcare professional can access a patient record (i.e., medical record) of a patient during care to achieve the aforementioned assessment and/or updating objectives.

The computer-implemented method 100 involves capturing images of a display screen of a patient monitoring system via which vital signs of a patient are acquired, i.e., capturing one or more of such images. The method 100 begins at 101, after which, in operation 103, the processor device 25 receives identification information of the healthcare professional, e.g., a scan of his badge or the like or manually provided identification information, after which, in operation 105, identification information for the patient is received, e.g., in the form of a scanning bracelet or wristband or the like, upon which the patient's patient record may be retrieved from the database 15. In operation 107, the processor apparatus 25 overlays the display screen 21 of the electronic client device 20 with a mask corresponding to a relevant area of the display screen 30 of the patient monitoring system for acquiring patient vital signs. This is schematically illustrated in fig. 4, where a mask 40 is superimposed on a view 30' of the display screen 21 of the electronic client device 20 of the display screen 30 of the monitoring system for acquiring vital signs of a patient, on which view the values 33-36 of these actual vital signs are displayed. The view 30' of the display screen 30 of the monitoring system for acquiring vital signs of a patient, on which the values 33-36 of these actual vital signs are being displayed, is typically obtained by a healthcare professional aiming the camera 23 of the electronic client device 20 at the display screen 30. A mask 40 is typically provided to enable the healthcare professional to align the views by the camera 23 so that the area of the display screen 30 is located within the mask 40, thereby ensuring that all vital sign data values of interest displayed on the display screen 30 are captured in the photographic image corresponding to the view 30 'when the photographic image of the view 30' is captured.

In a further refinement, schematically illustrated in fig. 5, the mask 40 may include one or more visual sections 42 that may be aligned with the respective vital sign data values 33-36 in the view 30' of the display screen 30 of the patient monitoring system. This further ensures that all relevant vital sign data values for the patient are captured, and that the relevant vital sign data values are captured in the region of the view 30 'where they are expected by the processor means adapted to extract the vital sign data values from the image corresponding to the view 30'.

A software program (application) may be provided with a single mask 40, which is automatically selected to overlay the view 30' in operation 107. This is appropriate, for example, in the following cases: the healthcare facility typically uses the same patient monitoring system for all patients in the facility so that a single mask 40 can be used to capture images of the respective display screens of different patient monitoring systems, provided that all of these screens have the same layout and dimensions. However, in alternative scenarios, the healthcare facility utilizes a plurality of different types of patient monitoring systems, wherein different patient monitoring systems may have different types of display screens, e.g., display screens having different dimensions, display screens displaying different types of vital sign information, etc. In such a case, the software program may be provided with a library of masks 40, wherein each mask in the library corresponds to a display screen layout of a particular patient monitoring system, such that in attempting to capture vital sign information on such a display screen, a user (healthcare professional) of the electronic client device 20 may select an appropriate mask 40 from the library prior to capturing an image of the display screen 30' of the particular patient monitoring system by means of the selected mask 40. Alternatively, the electronic client device 20 may be adapted to automatically select the appropriate mask 40. This can be achieved, for example, by: the user aims the camera 23 of the electronic client device 20 at the display screen 30' or another part of the patient monitoring system, evaluates the view, e.g. by comparing it with a library of views of known patient monitoring systems, and identifies the patient monitoring system therefrom, using the processor means 25, so that the mask 40 corresponding to the identified patient monitoring system can be selected accordingly.

In operation 109, the processor means 25 of the electronic client device 20 receives a user command to capture a photographic image of the actual view 30' by the camera 23, at which point the processor means 25 captures the photographic image, for example by storing in a data storage device (not shown) of the electronic client device 20, thereby obtaining a photographic image of the display screen 30 of the patient monitoring system containing one or more vital sign data values of interest for the patient. Such photographic images may form part of a sequence or stream of photographic images, e.g. a video stream or the like, wherein at least some of the photographic images may be evaluated as explained in the present application, e.g. to capture dynamic changes in vital sign data values of the patient. In a particular example, the (video) camera may continuously monitor or capture the display screen 30 'of the patient monitoring system, for example, to automatically capture vital sign information of a patient over a long period of time by capturing a stream of photographic images of the display screen 30' over the period of time.

However, in some embodiments, it may not be necessary to capture such photographic images. For example, the electronic client device 20 may be configured with other software programs (applications) for interfacing with the patient monitoring system, e.g. via a wireless link operating through the data communication interface 27, such that one or more vital sign data values 33-36 acquired with the patient monitoring system for the patient may be displayed directly onto the display screen 21 of the electronic client device 20, as schematically shown in fig. 6 (i.e. in other software programs). In such a case, an image in the form of a screen capture (or screen print) of the information displayed on the display screen 21 may instead be produced, so that the vital sign data values may be extracted from the screen capture rather than from a photographic image of the display screen 30'.

Next, in operation 111 at least one captured image containing one or more vital sign data values is transmitted to a processor device adapted to extract those vital sign data values from the at least one image, for example using an optical character recognition algorithm. The processor means may be the processor means 12 of the electronic device 10 or alternatively may be the processor means 25 of the electronic client device 20, in which case the transmission operation 111 may be omitted.

In the embodiment in which the processor arrangement 25 is responsible for extracting vital sign data values from at least one captured (photographic) image in operation 113, the processor arrangement 25 may also be adapted to attempt to recognize vital sign data values of interest, e.g. at a set frequency or continuously, during the aiming of the electronic client device 20 by the healthcare professional at the display screen 30 of the patient monitoring system. In this way, the processor means 25 provides the healthcare professional operating the electronic client device 20 with additional feedback as to whether the processor means is able to recognize the vital sign data values in the view 30' captured with the camera 23 of the electronic client device 20. The processor means 25 may signal the successful recognition of one or more vital sign data values in a view 30' on the display screen 23 in any suitable way, e.g. by providing a visual indicator in this view or by generating an audible or tactile indicator with the electronic client device 20. Such an indicator may take any suitable form. When it is known that the processor means 25 is able to successfully extract or has successfully extracted vital sign data values from the image, it may be assumed that such indicator signals are provided or generated to the healthcare professional, i.e. that the photographic image corresponds to the actual view 30' of the display screen 30 of the patient monitoring system. Alternatively, in case the processor means 12 of the electronic device 10 is in operation responsible for extracting vital sign data values from the captured (photographic) image, no such additional feedback can be provided, since the image is captured before the image is evaluated by the processor means 12.

One or more vital sign data values for the patient may be extracted from each captured image based on a priori knowledge by the processor device 12 or 25 of where in the image (i.e., which regions of interest in the image) include which data values. For example, the processor device 12 or 25 may know in which region of interest a particular type of vital sign data value (e.g. a blood pressure value) is typically located. This may be achieved in any suitable way. In a particular embodiment, the captured photographic image includes metadata identifying the mask 40 (or patient monitoring system corresponding to the mask 40) used to capture the photographic image, such that the processor device 12 or 25 can determine such layout of the display screen 30 captured in the photographic image from the metadata, for example, by retrieving the layout from a layout library for display screens of patient monitoring systems within a clinical care environment.

Alternatively, the processor device 12 or 25 may systematically evaluate the captured image to determine which vital sign data values are present in the captured image. This may be useful, for example, in the following situations: the processor means 12 or 25 has no a priori knowledge of where vital sign data values of interest can be found in the captured images. In such a case, the processor device 12 or 25 may attempt to recognize vital sign data values in a particular region of the captured image and, upon recognizing the data values, attempt to match the data values to a particular type of vital sign, e.g., blood pressure, heart rate, body temperature, blood oxygen saturation, etc., by comparing the retrieved vital sign data values to typical expected values for data values for various particular types of vital signs and attempting to identify a particular manner of displaying the retrieved vital sign data value or values. For example, a pair of values, such as 120/80, that are in close proximity to each other and that may be separated by a return or slash (/), may be recognized by the processor device 12 or 25 as a systolic blood pressure value and a diastolic blood pressure value. Values around 37, which are very close to the degree sign, can be recognized as body temperature, etc.

When the vital sign data value is extracted from the image in operation 113, the method 100' may proceed to operation 115, wherein the extracted vital sign data value is verified by the user, for example, by presenting the extracted vital sign data value on the display screen 23 of the electronic client device 20. For example, in case the processor device 12 is responsible for extracting vital sign data values from the captured image, the processor device 25 may receive the extracted vital sign data values from the processor device 12 via the data communication interfaces 14 and 27. Fig. 7 schematically shows an exemplary embodiment of a display screen displaying the extracted vital signs data values 33-36, the display screen having one or more buttons 28 by which a user (i.e. a healthcare professional) can verify the extracted data values, for example by comparing them with the data values displayed on the display screen 30 of the patient monitoring system. For example, one or more buttons 28 may allow the user to accept the extracted one or more vital sign data values, accept and store the extracted one or more vital sign data values, or reject the extracted one or more vital sign data values. Of course, such authentication functions may take any suitable shape and are not limited to only buttons 28. Furthermore, the verification function typically comprises an option to accept the extracted vital sign data value or values and a rejection option.

If the user of the electronic client device 20 rejects the extracted vital sign data value or values, the process can optionally return to operation 109, where the user can capture another (i.e., improved) image of the data screen 30 of the patient monitoring system. Alternatively, the user may decide to manually enter one or more vital sign data values of interest at this time. On the other hand, if the user accepts the extracted one or more vital sign data values, the method 100 'may proceed to operation 117, where the processor device 12 or 25 calculates a score, such as EWS, indicative of the patient's physical health based on the approved extracted one or more vital sign data values and, if provided, additional observations of the healthcare professional (e.g., AVPU information). The processor apparatus 12 or 25 may evaluate the calculated score in operation 119 and if the calculated score indicates that the patient is not well-fit or deteriorating, e.g., a physical state requiring urgent medical care, a visible or audible alert is generated with the electronic client device 20 in operation 121, alerting the healthcare professional to the fact that the patient may require additional medical care.

Otherwise, the method 100' proceeds directly to operation 123, wherein the calculated score and/or the extracted one or more vital sign data values are stored by the processor device 12 or 25 in the patient record within the medical database 15. At the same time, the captured image may be stored in the medical database 15 and linked to the stored calculated score and/or the extracted one or more vital sign data values, so that at any point in time the calculated score and/or the extracted one or more vital sign data values may be scrutinized using the stored image of the display screen 30 to which the one or more vital sign data values are displayed. Preferably, the identification information of the healthcare professional is also stored in the medical database 15 and linked to at least one of the stored images, the stored calculated scores and/or the stored extracted vital sign data value or values, so that in case of such scrutiny highlighting the problem of the stored data or scores, the responsible healthcare professional can be easily identified, for example due to an improper verification of the extracted vital sign data values. The method 100' then terminates in operation 125.

The above-described embodiments of methods 100 and 100 'may be implemented by computer-readable program instructions embodied on a computer-readable storage medium, which, when executed on processor device 12 and/or 25, cause the processor device to implement methods 100 and/or 100'. Any suitable computer readable storage medium may be used for this purpose, for example, an optically readable medium such as a CD, DVD, or Blu-Ray disc, a magnetically readable medium such as a hard disk, an electronic data storage device such as a memory stick, and the like. The computer readable storage medium may be a medium accessible via a network, such as the internet, so that the computer readable program instructions are accessible via the network. For example, the computer-readable storage medium may be a network-attached storage device, a storage area network, cloud storage, and the like. The computer readable storage medium may be an internet accessible service from which the computer readable program instructions are obtained. In an embodiment, the electronic device 10 and/or the electronic client device 20 is adapted to retrieve computer-readable program instructions from such computer-readable storage medium and to generate a new computer-readable storage medium by storing the retrieved computer-readable program instructions in a data storage (not shown), e.g. in a memory device or the like forming part of the data storage.

It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that the medical database 15 and the database in which the images are stored may be the same database or two separate databases with appropriate links between patient records.

It should be noted that the above-mentioned embodiments illustrate rather than limit the invention, and that those skilled in the art will be able to design many alternative embodiments without departing from the scope of the appended claims. In the claims, any reference signs placed between parentheses shall not be construed as limiting the claim. The word "comprising" does not exclude the presence of elements or steps other than those listed in a claim. The word "a" or "an" preceding an element does not exclude the presence of a plurality of such elements. The invention can be implemented by means of hardware comprising several distinct elements. In the device claim enumerating several means, several of these means may be embodied by one and the same item of hardware. The mere fact that certain measures are recited in mutually different dependent claims does not indicate that a combination of these measures cannot be used to advantage.