Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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COMPONENT BASED AGGREGATION OF MEDICATION ORDERS
TECHNICAL FIELD
100011 The present description relates generally to aggregation of
medication orders, and
more particularly, but not exclusively, to component based aggregation of
medication orders.
BACKGROUND
100021 A healthcare facility, such as a hospital, may include a pharmacy
that receives
patient orders for medications, e.g. from a physician order entry system, and
formulates the
ordered medications for administration to patients. For example, a healthcare
professional in
the pharmacy, such as a pharmacy technician, may formulate ordered
medications, such as
ordered intravenous (IV) medications, in the order in which the orders for the
medications are
received. An order for a medication may generally indicate one or more
component
medications used to formulate the ordered medication. Thus, the pharmacy
technician may
retrieve containers of the component medications that are indicated on the
order and may use
the retrieved containers of the component medications to formulate the ordered
medication.
A retrieved container may be used to formulate one or more ordered medication.
If there is
any excess component medication left in the retrieved containers after
formulating the
ordered medication, the excess component medications may be disposed of by the
healthcare
professional per hospital protocol. With the high costs of medications, any
reduction in
wastage can lead to significant cost savings.
SUMMARY
100031 The disclosed subject matter relates to a method for component based
aggregation
of medication orders. The method may include receiving a plurality of
medication orders, at
least some of the plurality of medication orders indicating a first component
medication or a
second component medication to be formulated into a medication for delivery.
The method
may further include aggregating, from the plurality of medication orders, a
first batch of
medication orders that each indicate the first component medication and a
second batch of
medication orders that each indicate the second component medication. The
method may
further include determining a first amount of the first component medication
to be used to
formulate the first batch of medication orders and a second amount of the
second component
medication to be used to formulate the second batch of medication orders. The
method may
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further include indicating the first amount of the first component medication
and the second
amount of the second component medication to be used to formulate the first
batch of
medication orders and the second batch of medication orders, respectively.
[0004] The disclosed subject matter also relates to a system for component
based
aggregation of medication orders. The system includes one or more processors
and a
memory including instructions that, when executed by the one or more
processors, cause the
one or more processors to: display a queue listing a plurality of medication
orders to be
prepared, each of the plurality of medication orders indicating one of a
plurality of
component medications, receive a selection of a first medication order of the
plurality of
medication orders listed in the queue, wherein the first medication order of
the plurality of
medication orders indicates a first component medication of the plurality of
component
medications, determine a second medication order of the plurality of
medication orders listed
in the queue that indicates the first component medication of the plurality of
component
medications, and reorder the displayed queue such that the second medication
order of the
plurality of medication orders is listed adjacent to the first medication
order of the plurality of
medication orders.
[0005] The disclosed subject matter also relates to a machine-readable
medium
embodying instructions that, when executed by a machine, allow the machine to
perform a
method for component based aggregation of medication orders. The method may
include
receiving a plurality of medication orders to be prepared, each of the
plurality of medication
orders indicating one of a plurality of component medications. The method may
further
include receiving an indication that a medication order of the plurality of
medication orders is
being prepared by a healthcare professional, wherein the medication order of
the plurality of
medication orders indicates a first component medication of the plurality of
component
medications. The method may further include determining other medication
orders of the
plurality of medication orders that indicate the first component medication of
the plurality of
component medications. The method may further include displaying the other
medication
orders of the plurality of medication orders that indicate the first component
medication of
the plurality of component medications.
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[0005a] In accordance with an aspect of an embodiment, there is provided a
method for
generating a queue for component based aggregation of medication orders, the
method
comprising: receiving, by an electronic device, a plurality of medication
orders, at least some
of the plurality of medication orders being received from one or more
healthcare devices
remote from the electronic device in the form of a replenishment signal and
indicating a first
component medication or a second component medication to be formulated into a
medication
for delivery, wherein the one or more healthcare devices include at least one
of an infusion
device, a drug delivery device, dispensing device, a monitoring device, a
respiratory device,
and a medical waste device; aggregating, from the plurality of medication
orders, by the
electronic device based on at least receiving the replenishment signal, a
first batch of
medication orders that each indicate the first component medication and a
second batch of
medication orders that each indicate the second component medication;
determining, by the
electronic device responsive to at least the aggregating, a first plurality of
medication
containers that, in aggregate, contain a first amount of the first component
medication to be
used to formulate the first batch of medication orders while minimizing an
excess amount of
the first component medication, and a second plurality of medication
containers that, in
aggregate, contain a second amount of the second component medication to be
used to
formulate the second batch of medication orders, while minimizing an excess
amount of the
second component medication; providing for display on a first user interface,
an indication of
at least the determined first plurality of medication containers and a
location of the first
plurality of medication containers; receiving an indication that at least the
first plurality of
medication containers were scanned by a scanning device; generating for
display on a second
user interface, after the first plurality of medication containers were
scanned by the scanning
device, a queue that lists a second plurality of medication orders to be
prepared, the second
plurality of medication orders including medication orders in the first batch
of medication
orders and the second batch of medication orders; receiving a selection
indicating that a first
medication order of the second plurality of medication orders listed in the
queue is being
prepared, wherein the first medication order indicates the first component
medication;
reordering the queue, by the electronic device responsive to receiving the
selection of the first
medication order, to list adjacent to the first medication order a second
medication order that
also includes the first component medication; and provide, by the electronic
device, the
reordered queue for display on a display screen.
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10005b] In accordance with another aspect of an embodiment, there is provided
a system
for generating a queue for component based aggregation of medication orders,
the system
comprising: one or more processors; and a memory including instructions that,
when
executed by the one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to:
receive a first
plurality of medication orders, one or more of the medication orders being
received in the
form of a replenishment signal transmitted by one or more of healthcare
devices; aggregate,
from the first plurality of medication orders, a batch of medication orders
that share a
common component medication; determine, for retrieval from a medication
storage area, a
plurality of medication containers that, in aggregate, contain at least a
first amount of the
common component medication required to formulate the batch of medication
orders;
provide, over a network to a first computing device separate from the one or
more processors,
the first amount, the determined plurality of containers, and a location of
the containers for
display on a first user interface; receive an indication that the plurality of
containers were
scanned by a scanning device associated with the first computing device and
made available
to a medication preparation area; transmit, responsive to receiving the
indication that the
plurality of containers were scanned, an indication of the batch of medication
orders and the
plurality of containers to a second computing device associated with a
medication preparation
area; provide for display at a second user interface associated with the
second computing
device, a queue listing a second plurality of medication orders to be
prepared, the second
plurality of medication orders including medication orders in the transmitted
batch of
medication orders, each of the second plurality of medication orders
indicating one of a
plurality of component medications; receive a selection of a first medication
order of the
second plurality of medication orders listed in the queue, wherein the first
medication order
of the second plurality of medication orders indicates a first component
medication of the
plurality of component medications; determine, responsive to receiving the
selection, a
second medication order of the second plurality of medication orders listed in
the queue that
indicates the first component medication of the plurality of component
medications; and
reorder, responsive to determining the second medication order indicates the
first component
medication, the displayed queue such that the second medication order of the
second plurality
of medication orders is listed in the queue adjacent to the first medication
order of the second
plurality of medication orders, wherein the plurality of medication containers
is selected to
limit a first excess amount by which a first aggregate amount of the common
component
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medication provided by the plurality of medication containers exceeds the
first amount such
that the first excess amount is less than a container size of the plurality of
medication
containers.
[0005c] In accordance with yet another aspect of an embodiment, there is
provided a non-
transitory machine-readable medium having stored thereon instructions that,
when executed
by a machine, allow the machine to perform a method for generating a queue for
receiving a
first plurality of medication orders to be prepared, each of the first
plurality of medication
orders indicating one of a plurality of component medications, one or more of
the medication
orders being received in the form of a replenishment signal transmitted by one
or more of
healthcare devices; aggregating, from the first plurality of medication
orders, a batch of
medication orders that share a common component medication; determining, for
retrieval
from a medication storage area, a plurality of medication containers that, in
aggregate,
contain at least a first amount of the common component medication required to
formulate
the batch of medication orders; providing, over a network to a first computing
device separate
from the machine, the first amount, the determined plurality of containers,
and a location of
the containers for display on a first user interface; receiving an indication
that the plurality of
containers were scanned by a scanning device associated with the first
computing device and
made available to a medication preparation area; transmitting, responsive to
receiving the
indication that the plurality of containers were scanned, an indication of the
batch of
medication orders and the plurality of containers to a second computing device
associated
with a medication preparation area; providing for display at a second user
interface associated
with the second computing device, a queue listing a second plurality of
medication orders to
be prepared, the second plurality of medication orders including medication
orders in the
transmitted batch of medication orders, each of the second plurality of
medication orders
indicating one of a plurality of component medications; receiving a selection
indicating that a
first medication order of the second plurality of medication orders listed in
the queue is being
prepared by a healthcare professional, wherein the first medication order
indicates a first
component medication of the plurality of component medications; determining,
responsive to
receiving the selection, other medication orders of the plurality of
medication orders that
indicate the first component medication of the plurality of component
medications;
displaying, responsive to determining the other medication orders indicate the
first
component medication, one or more of the other medication orders of the
plurality of
medication orders that indicate the first component medication of the
plurality of component
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medications, wherein the other medications are displayed in the queue adjacent
to the first
medication order of the second plurality of medication orders, wherein the
plurality of
medication containers is selected to limit a first excess amount by which a
first aggregate
amount of the common component medication provided by the plurality of
medication
containers exceeds the first amount such that the first excess amount is less
than a smallest
container size of the plurality of medication containers.
[0006] It is
understood that other configurations of the subject technology will become
readily apparent to those skilled in the art from the following detailed
description, wherein
various configurations of the subject technology are shown and described by
way of
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illustration. As will be realized, the subject technology is capable of other
and different
configurations and its several details are capable of modification in various
other respects, all
without departing from the scope of the subject technology. Accordingly, the
drawings and
detailed description are to be regarded as illustrative in nature and not as
restrictive.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
100071 Certain features of the subject technology are set forth in the
appended claims.
However, for purpose of explanation, several embodiments of the subject
technology are set
forth in the following figures.
100081 FIG. I illustrates an example hospital network environment in which
a system for
component based aggregation of medication orders may be implemented in
accordance with
one or more embodiments.
100091 FIG. 2 illustrates a flow diagram of an example process for a system
for component
based aggregation of medication orders in accordance with one or more
embodiments.
100101 FIG. 3 illustrates a flow diagram of an example process for a system
for component
based aggregation of medication orders in accordance with one or more
embodiments.
[00111 FIG. 4 illustrates an example user interface that may be utilized in
a system for
component based aggregation of medication orders in accordance with one or
more
embodiments.
100121 FIG. 5 illustrates an example user interface that may be utilized in
a system for
component based aggregation of medication orders in accordance with one or
more
embodiments.
100131 FIG. 6 conceptually illustrates an electronic system with which one
or more
embodiments of the subject technology may be implemented.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
00141 The detailed description set forth below is intended as a description
of various
configurations of the subject technology and is not intended to represent the
only
configurations in which the subject technology may be practiced. The appended
drawings are
incorporated herein and constitute a part of the detailed description. The
detailed description
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includes specific details for the purpose of providing a thorough
understanding of the subject
technology. However, it will be clear and apparent to those skilled in the art
that the subject
technology is not limited to the specific details set forth herein and may be
practiced using
one or more embodiments. In one or more instances, well-known structures and
components
are shown in block diagram form in order to avoid obscuring the concepts of
the subject
technology.
10015] The subject system for component based aggregation of medication
orders may
allow a healthcare facility, such as a hospital, to substantially minimize the
amount of
medication that is wasted when component medications are picked, or retrieved,
by a
healthcare professional, for the purposes of preparing ordered medications.
For example, the
subject system may provide a healthcare professional with an indication of a
container, or a
set of containers, that provides a sufficient amount of the component
medication to prepare
the ordered medications while minimizing any excess amount of the component
medication,
e.g. any amount of the component medication that is left unused after the
ordered medications
are prepared. Furthermore, the subject system may allow a healthcare facility
to minimize
the amount of component medications that arc wasted when ordered medications
are
prepared. For example, the subject system may aggregate medication orders,
also referred to
as orders or orders for medications, based on common component medications
such that a
healthcare professional can sequentially prepare ordered medications that have
a common
component medication. In this manner, the likelihood of any component
medication being
wasted, or expiring, is substantially minimized.
[0016] FIG. 1 illustrates an example hospital network environment 100 in
which a system
for component based aggregation of medication orders may be implemented in
accordance
with one or more embodiments. Not all of the depicted components may be
required,
however, and one or more embodiments may include additional components not
shown in the
figure. Variations in the arrangement and type of the components may be made
without
departing from the spirit or scope of the claims as set forth herein.
Additional, different or
fewer components may be provided.
[0017] The example hospital network environment 100 includes a network 105,
a
physician order entry (POE) system 110, a pharmacy information system (PIS)
120, one or
more healthcare devices 130A-F, an electronic device 140A that is located in a
medication
storage area, and an electronic device 140B that is located in a medication
preparation area.
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In one or more embodiments, the medication storage area may be an area where a
medication
inventory of a healthcare facility is stored, and the medication preparation
area may be an IV
workroom or compounding station, such as a clean workroom, a sterile workroom,
and/or a
non-sterile workroom. Other types of medication storage areas and/or
medication preparation
areas are also possible, such as nurse stations.
[0018] The POE system 110, PIS 120, healthcare devices 130A-F, and/or
electronic
devices 140A-B may be communicatively coupled to one another, such as by the
network
105. In one or more embodiments, one or more of the POE system 110, the PIS
120, the
healthcare devices 130A-F, or the electronic devices 140A-B may be directly
coupled to one
another. In addition, there may be a number of other devices connected to the
network 105,
such as a control system, additional healthcare systems, e.g. a hospital
information system
(HIS), a laboratory information system (EIS), or other clinical and/or
logistical systems,
additional healthcare devices, additional electronic devices, external
systems, computing
devices, mobile devices, etc. The POE system 110, the PIS 120, one or more of
the
healthcare devices 130A-F, and/or one or more of the electronic devices 140A-B
may be, or
may include all or part of, the electronic system that is discussed further
below with respect
to Fig. 6.
[00191 The network 105 may be a communication network, such as a public
communication network (such as the Internet, cellular data network, dialup
modems over a
telephone network), a private communications network (such as private local
area network
("LAN"), leased lines), etc. The network 105 may also include, but is not
limited to, any one
or more of the following network topologies, including a bus network, a star
network, a ring
network, a mesh network, a star-bus network, a tree or hierarchical network,
and the like.
The connections of the network 105 may be wired or wireless. For example, one
or more of
the POE system 110, the PIS 120, the healthcare devices 130A-F, and/or the
electronic
devices 140A-B may transmit wireless signals over the network 105, such as
wireless
Ethernet signals, radio frequency (RF) signals, infrared (IR) signals,
Bluetooth signals, or any
other means capable of carrying information in a wireless manner between
devices having
appropriate transmitters and/or receivers.
[0020] The POE system 110 and/or the PIS 120 may be single computing devices,
such as
computer servers. Alternatively, the POE system 110 and/or the PIS 120 may
represent one
or more computing devices (such as a cloud of computers and/or a distributed
system) that
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are communicatively coupled, such as communicatively coupled over the network
105, and
that collectively, or individually, perform one or more functions that can be
performed
server-side, such as receiving messages, transmitting messages, storing
messaging, receiving
control commands, providing user interfaces, transmitting notifications, etc.
The POE system
110 and/or the PIS 120 may be coupled with various databases, such as data
stores, storage
services, or other computing devices.
10021] The POE system 110 and/or the PIS 120 may be systems that facilitate
with
providing healthcare, and/or provide healthcare. The POE system 110 may be
used, for
example, by physicians to enter orders for patients, such as orders for
medications to be
administered to patients. The orders for medications may be transmitted to the
PIS 120 for
preparation. The PIS 120 may store, for example, information pertaining to a
pharmacy of a
healthcare facility, such as outstanding orders, filled orders, medication
inventory, patient
medical profiles/histories, etc. For example, the PIS 120 may be coupled to a
database that
stores, e.g., an inventory of the medications that are stored in the
medication storage area
and/or medications that are temporarily stored in one or more medication
preparation areas.
[00221 The healthcare devices 130A-F may include infusion devices, such as
infusion
pumps, drug delivery devices, dispensing devices, such as automated dispensing
machines,
monitoring devices, respiratory devices, such as ventilators, waste devices,
such as drug
disposal devices, or generally any device that may facilitate with providing
healthcare and/or
may provide healthcare. One or more of the healthcare devices 130A-F may
include a
processor and/or a memory. Alternatively, or in addition, one or more of the
healthcare
devices 130A-F may be communicatively coupled to a device that includes a
processor and a
memory, such as via a serial port.
100231 For example, the healthcare devices 130A-F may include automated
dispensing
machines (ADM), such as Pyxis MedstationsTM, which store and dispense
medications at
nurse's stations, thereby providing distributed access to medications. The
healthcare devices
130A-F may further include infusion devices, such as infusion pumps, that
assist with
administering medications to patients. The healthcare devices 130A-F may also
include
waste devices that accept and store wasted medications, e.g. excess
medications, from
healthcare professionals and track the amount of medications wasted by
healthcare
professionals. One or more of the healthcare devices 130A-F that provide
medications, e.g.
that provide access to medications or that administer medications, may
transmit siimals, such
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as replenishment signals, to the PIS 120 when the medications need to be
replenished. For
example, an intravenous (IV) pump may transmit a replenishment signal when an
IV bag that
is being administered to a patient needs to be replenished. Similarly, an
automated
dispensing machine may transmit a replenishment signal when one or more of the
medications distributed by the automated dispensing machine are running low.
[0024] The electronic devices 140A-B may be any electronic devices such as
laptop or
desktop computers, mobile phones, personal digital assistants ("PDAs"), tablet
computers,
televisions or other displays, or other appropriate computing devices that can
be used to
display user interfaces that facilitate with, e.g., picking component
medications for ordered
medications and/or preparing ordered medications. For example, the electronic
device 140A
that is located in the medication storage area may display a queue to
facilitate with retrieving,
or picking, medications from inventory for received orders in a manner that
substantially
minimizes waste, while the electronic device 140B that is located in the
medication
preparation area may display a queue to facilitate with preparing ordered
medications in a
manner that substantially minimizes waste.
100251 In the example of Fig. I. the electronic devices 140A-B are depicted
as desktop
computers; however, the electronic devices 140A-B may be any of the
aforementioned
electronic devices, and/or any other electronic devices, e.g. The electronic
devices 140A-B
may include a processor and/or a memory. The electronic devices 140A-B may
include input
devices that may be used to select or identify component medications and/or
containers that
contain component medications, e.g. by scanning a label attached to a
container. The input
devices may include, e.g., bar code scanners, radio frequency identification
(RFID) readers,
or generally any devices that can recognize or identify a component
medication, a container
that contains a component medication, and/or a container that will be used to
store an ordered
medication.
190261 For explanatory purposes, the electronic device 140A is described
herein as being
located in a medication storage area and the electronic device 140B is
described herein as
being located in a medication preparation area; however, the electronic
devices 140A-B may
be portable devices. e.g. a tablet device or a mobile phone, that a healthcare
professional may
carry in and out of the medication storage area and/or the medication
preparation area. The
medication storage area and/or the medication preparation area may be
proximally located
within a pharmacy of a healthcare facility. Alternatively, or in addition, the
medication
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storage area and the medication preparation area may be disparately located
within, or outside
of, the healthcare facility. In one or more implementations, the healthcare
facility may
include multiple medication storage areas, one or more of which may include
the electronic
device 140A, and/or multiple medication preparation areas, one or more of
which may
include the electronic device 140B.
10027] In operation, one or more orders for medications may be received by
the PIS 120,
such as from the POE system 110, or from one of the healthcare devices 130A-F,
e.g. in the
form of a replenishment signal. An order may indicate at least one component
medication,
such as cefazolin, vancomycin, norepinephrine, saline solution, etc., along
with an amount of
the component medication to be used to prepare the medications. In one or more
embodiments, the orders for medications may include orders for IV bags. The
PIS 120 may
transmit the orders to the electronic device 140A that is located in the
medication storage
area, such that the component medications of the orders can be picked e.g.
retrieved, from the
medication storage area, e.g. by a healthcare professional.
[00281 In one or more embodiments, the healthcare facility may utilize
anticipatory
batching for fast moving compounds or components. For example, a determined
amount of a
medication that includes a particular compound or component may be prepared as
an
anticipatory batch, e.g. irrespective of whether any orders have been received
for the
medication. The anticipatory batch of the medication may be associated with
one or more
periodic automatic replenishment (PAR) levels. If the prepared amount of the
medication,
e.g. from the anticipatory batch, falls below a PAR level, a system, such as
the PIS 120, may
generate one or more orders for the medication, e.g. an "auto-reorder" based
on the PAR
levels set, and the one or more orders may be provided to the PIS 120, e.g.
along with orders
received from the POE 110 and/or from one or more of the healthcare devices
130A-F.
[00291 The electronic device 140A that is located in the medication storage
area may
aggregate the received orders into batches, or groups, e.g. based on the
component
medications that are indicated by each order. For example, the electronic
device 140A may
hatch the orders such that orders that have a common (e.g., the same)
component medication
are picked together. After batching the orders, e.g. based on the component
medications, the
electronic device 140A may select the first batch of orders and determine the
containers from
inventory that should be picked to prepare the first batch of orders in a
manner that minimizes
wasted component medications. The containers may include vials, bags, bottles,
packages, or
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generally any container that can store a component medication. In one or more
embodiments,
the steps of batching the orders and determining the containers to be
retrieved from inventory
to prepare a batch of orders may be performed by the PIS 120, and/or another
server system.
The PIS 120 may then transmit the batches, along with the amount of component
medications
to be retrieved for each batch and/or the containers to be retrieved from
inventory for each
batch, to the electronic device 140A. An example process for batching the
orders is
discussed further below with respect to Fig. 2.
[0030] The electronic device 140A may determine a first batch of orders and
may provide
an indication of the component medications needed to prepare the first batch,
the amount of
the component medications that needs to be retrieved for the first batch, and
the containers
from inventory that should be retrieved for the first batch. For example, the
electronic device
140A may display a user interface, such as the user interface discussed below
with respect to
Fig. 4, to facilitate the healthcare professional with picking the component
medications for
the first batch. The healthcare professional may retrieve the containers from
the inventory of
the medication storage area for preparing the first batch. For example, the
healthcare
professional may identify each container that is retrieved from inventory,
e.g. by scanning the
containers with a bar code scanner. The electronic device 140A may transmit
indications of
the scanned containers to the PIS 120 and the PIS 120 may store an indication
that the
containers are being removed from the inventory of the medication storage area
and being
delivered to a temporary inventory of a medication preparation area. The
containers may
then be delivered to the medication preparation area for preparation of the
first batch of
orders.
100311 Once the containers containing the component medications for the first
batch of
orders are delivered to the medication preparation area, the electronic device
140B (that is
located in the medication preparation area) receives an indication of the
first batch of orders.
The electronic device 140B may display, e.g. to a healthcare professional who
will be
preparing the first batch of orders, a user interface that includes a queue
that lists the first
batch of orders. For example, the electronic device 140B may display the user
interface that
is discussed further below with respect to Fig. 5. In one or more embodiments,
the electronic
device 140B may order the queue such that the orders that will be prepared
with a common
component medication are displayed adjacently in the queue.
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[0032] The electronic device 140B may receive an indication that the
healthcare
professional has initiated preparation of an order listed in the queue, and/or
that the
healthcare professional has selected an order listed in the queue. Upon
receiving the
indication, the electronic device 140B determines whether there are any other
orders listed in
the queue that will be prepared using the component medication of the order
that is currently
being prepared. If the electronic device 140B determines that any such orders
are listed in
the queue, the electronic device 140B may notify the healthcare professional
of the orders
and/or the electronic device 140B may re-order the queue, if necessary, such
that the orders
are listed in the queue adjacent to the order currently being prepared. In
this manner, orders
that are prepared using the same component medication can be prepared
together, thereby
minimizing any excess amount of component medication that is wasted. An
example process
for aggregating orders based on common component medications is discussed
further below
with respect to Fig. 3.
100331 FIG. 2 illustrates a flow diagram of an example process 200 for a
system for
component based aggregation of medication orders in accordance with one or
more
embodiments. For explanatory purposes, the example process 200 is described
herein with
reference to the electronic device 140A of Fig. 1; however, the example
process 200 is not
limited to the electronic device 140A of the example hospital network
environment 100 of
Fig. I. For example, one or more blocks of the example process 200 may be
performed by
the PIS 120 or another server system. Further for explanatory purposes, the
blocks of the
example process 200 are described herein as occurring in serial fashion, or
linearly.
However, multiple blocks of the example process 200 may occur in parallel. In
addition, the
blocks of the example process 200 need not be performed in the order shown
and/or one or
more of the blocks of the example process 200 need not be performed.
100341 In block 202, the electronic device 140A in the medication storage
area receives
orders for medications, such as from the PIS 120. Alternatively, or in
addition, the orders
may be received from the POE system 110 and/or from one or more of the
healthcare devices
130A-F. An order for a medication may indicate one or more component
medications that
are used to prepare the medication, such as cefazolin, vancomycin, saline
solution, etc., and
an amount, or a range of amounts, of each component medication that is used to
prepare the
medication. At least some of the received orders may indicate at least one of
a first
component medication or a second component medication. In block 204, the
electronic
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device 140A aggregates the orders that indicate the first component medication
into a first
batch of orders. In block 206, the electronic device 140A aggregates the
orders that indicate
the second component medication into a second batch of orders.
[0035] In block 208, the electronic device 140A determines an amount of the
first
component medication that will be used to prepare the first batch of orders.
For example, the
electronic device 140A may add the amounts of the first component medication
indicated by
each of the orders of the first batch to determine the amount of the first
component
medication that will be used to prepare the first batch of orders. In block
210, the electronic
device 140A determines an amount of the second component medication that will
be used to
prepare the second batch of orders. For example, the electronic device 140A
may add the
amounts of the second component medication indicated by each of the orders of
the second
batch to determine the amount of the second component medication that will be
used to
prepare the second batch of orders.
[0036] In block 212, the electronic device 140A determines a first set of
medication
containers in the inventory of the medication storage area that can provide
the determined
amount of the first component medication and minimize waste. For example, the
electronic
device 140A may determine a first set of containers such that the containers
collectively
contain at least the determined amount of the first component medication and
such that the
containers minimize any amount of the first component medication that is in
excess of the
determined amount. Thus, if the determined amount of the first component
medication is
1400 milliliters (mL), and there are containers that contain the first
component medication in
sizes that include, e.g., 300mL, 750mL, and 1000mL, the electronic device 140A
may
determine that two of the 750mL containers should be retrieved, rather than,
e.g., two of the
1000mL containers, since the two 750mL containers only result in an excess
amount of
100mL, while the two 1000mL containers would result in an excess amount of
600mL. Thus,
picking the two 750mL containers, rather than the two 1000mL containers, may
reduce the
amount of the first medication component that is wasted by up to 500mL.
[0037] In one or more embodiments, the electronic device 140A may determine
whether
any prepared medications that include the first component medication have been
returned to
the medication storage area, and/or to the pharmacy. lithe electronic device
140A
determines that any prepared medications that include the first component
medication have
been returned, the electronic device 140A determines whether the returned
medications can
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be used to prepare any of the orders of the first batch. For example, the
electronic device
140A may determine whether the returned medications have expired, or whether
the returned
medications will expire before they can be used to prepare and administer one
of the orders of
the first batch. If the electronic device 140A determines that any of the
prepared medications
can be used to prepare an order from the first batch, the electronic device
140A may prioritize
the selection of the returned medications over any component medications in
the storage area,
e.g., since the returned medications are likely to expire sooner than the
stored component
medications.
[0038] In block 214, the electronic device 140A determines a second set of
medication
containers in the inventory of the medication storage area that can provide
the determined
amount of the first component medication and minimize waste. For example, the
electronic
device 140A may determine a second set of containers such that the containers
collectively
contain at least the determined amount of the second component medication and
such that the
containers minimize any amount of the second component medication that is in
excess of the
determined amount, as discussed above with respect to the first component
medication.
[0039] In block 216, the electronic device 140A indicates the amount of the
first
component medication that will be used to prepare the first batch of orders
and the
determined first set of the medication containers, such as to the healthcare
professional who
is picking, or retrieving, the first component medication from the medication
storage area.
For example, the electronic device 140A may display the user interface
discussed below with
respect to Fig. 4 to the healthcare professional. In one or more embodiments,
the electronic
device 140A may only provide the healthcare professional with an indication of
the first
component medication and the amount of the first component medication that
will be used to
prepare the first batch of orders. The healthcare professional may pick the
indicated first set
of containers from inventory and may use a scanning device associated with the
electronic
device 140A to scan the picked first set of containers. The electronic device
140A may
transmit an indication of the scanned first set of containers to the PIS 120.
The PIS 120 may
associate the scanned first set of containers with the first batch of orders
and the PIS 120 may
move the scanned first set of containers from the inventory of the medication
storage area to a
temporary inventory of the medication preparation area.
[0040] In block 218, the electronic device 140A indicates the amount of the
second
component medication that will be used to prepare the second batch of orders
and the
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determined second set of the medication containers, such as to the healthcare
professional
who is picking, or retrieving, the second component medication from the
medication storage
area. For example, the electronic device 140A may display the user interface
discussed
below with respect to Fig. 4 to the healthcare professional. In one or more
embodiments, the
electronic device 140A may only provide the healthcare professional with an
indication of the
second component medication and the amount of the second component medication
that will
be used to prepare the second batch of orders. The healthcare professional may
pick the
indicated second set of containers from inventory and may use a scanning
device associated
with the electronic device 140A to scan the picked second set of containers.
The electronic
device 140A may transmit an indication of the scanned second set of containers
to the PIS
120. The PIS 120 may associate the scanned second set of containers with the
second batch
of orders and the PIS 120 may move the scanned second set of containers from
the inventory
of the medication storage area to a temporary inventory of the medication
preparation area.
The retrieved component medications for the first and/or second batch of
orders may be
delivered to the medication preparation area.
[0041] In one or more embodiments, the electronic device 140A may aggregate
the first
batch of orders, and may deliver the first batch of orders to the medication
preparation area,
separately from the second batch of orders. For example, each batch of orders
may be
assigned to be prepared by a particular healthcare professional that is
located in a particular
medication preparation area. Thus, the first batch of orders may be
aggregated, picked, and
delivered to a medication preparation area associated with a first healthcare
professional, and
the second batch of orders may be aggregated, picked, and delivered to a
second medication
preparation area associated with a second healthcare professional.
Alternatively, or in
addition, multiple batches of orders may be combined together for delivery to
a medication
preparation area and for preparation by a single healthcare professional. For
example, if there
is not a sufficient number of ordered medications that share a common
component
medication, orders for different component medications may be batched
together.
[0042] FIG. 3 illustrates a flow diagram of an example process 300 for a
system for
component based aggregation of medication orders in accordance with one or
more
embodiments. For explanatory purposes, the example process 300 is described
herein with
reference to the electronic device 140B of Fig. 1; however, the example
process 300 is not
limited to the electronic device 140B of the example hospital network
environment 100 of
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Fig. I. For example, one or more blocks of the example process 300 may be
performed by
the PIS 120 or another server system. Further for explanatory purposes, the
blocks of the
example process 300 are described herein as occurring in serial fashion, or
linearly.
However, multiple blocks of the example process 300 may occur in parallel. In
addition, the
blocks of the example process 300 need not be performed in the order shown
and/or one or
more of the blocks of the example process 300 need not be performed.
[0043] In block 302, the electronic device 140B that is located in the
medication
preparation area receives orders for medications to be prepared, where the
orders indicate
component medications, and amounts thereof, to be used to prepare the ordered
medications.
For example, after the component medications for a batch of orders have been
picked and
scanned, the PIS 120 may transmit an indication of the batch of orders to the
medication
preparation area. In one or more implementations, a healthcare facility may
not implement
the process described above with respect to Fig. 2 when picking the orders.
Thus, the orders
received by the electronic device 140B may not be aggregated based on a common
component medication.
[0044] In block 304, the electronic device 140B may display the received
orders in a
queue. The electronic device 140B may display the queue on a display that is
attached to the
electronic device 140B, such as a screen of the electronic device 140B, or on
a remote display
that is communicatively coupled to the electronic device 140B, such as a
display screen
hanging on a wall in the medication preparation area. For example, the
electronic device
140B may display the user interface that is discussed further below with
respect to Fig. 5 to
the healthcare professional.
[0045] In block 306, the electronic device 140B receives an indication that
an order for a
medication that includes a first component medication is being prepared. For
example, the
indication may be generated when the healthcare professional selects one of
the orders that
are listed in the queue, e.g. using a human interface device of the electronic
device 140B,
such as a mouse, a keyboard, or a touch screen. Alternatively, or in addition,
the indication
may be generated when the healthcare professional uses a scanning device,
which is
communicatively coupled to the electronic device 140B, to scan a container
that will be used
to store the medication when the medication is prepared, e.g. the container
may include a
label, a bar code, or any other detectable identifier.
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[0046] In block 308, the electronic device 140B determines a second order
listed in the
queue that indicates the first component medication. For example, if the first
component
medication is cefazolin, the electronic device 140B may determine another
order for a
medication that includes cefazolin. In block 310, the electronic device 140B
determines
whether the second order that indicates the first component medication is
listed in the queue
adjacent to the first order that indicates the first component medication,
e.g. such that the first
and second orders will be prepared sequentially and/or in aggregate. If, in
block 310, the
electronic device 140B determines that the second order that indicates the
first component
medication is not listed in the queue adjacent to the first order that
indicates the first
component medication, the electronic device 140B moves to block 312. In block
312, the
electronic device 140B reorders the displayed queue such that the second order
is displayed
in the queue adjacent to the first order.
[0047] If, in block 310, the electronic device 140B determines that the
second order is
listed in the queue adjacent to the first order, the electronic device 140B
moves to block 314.
In block 314, the electronic device 140B provides a notification to the
healthcare professional
of the second order. For example, the electronic device 140B may display a pop-
up window
that alerts the healthcare professional to the second order. In this manner,
the electronic
device 140B facilitates the healthcare professional with preparing the first
and second orders,
that both indicate the first component medication, in aggregate.
[0048] FIG. 4 illustrates an example user interface 400 that may be
utilized in a system for
component based aggregation of medication orders in accordance with one or
more
embodiments. Not all of the depicted components may be required, however, and
one or
more embodiments may include additional components not shown in the figure.
Variations
in the arrangement and type of the components may be made without departing
from the
spirit or scope of the claims as set forth herein. Additional, different or
fewer components
may be provided.
[0049] The example user interface 400 includes an information display area
410, and a
batch display area 420. The information display area 410 may display
information regarding
a selected order for a medication and/or a selected component medication. The
batch display
area 420 may display batches of orders for medications that have been grouped
together, e.g.,
based on a common component medication. In operation, the user interface 400
may be
displayed on the electronic device 140A in the medication storage area, e.g.
to facilitate a
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healthcare professional with picking component medications in a manner that
minimizes any
wasted amounts of the component medications.
[00501 FIG. 5 illustrates an example user interface 500 that may be
utilized in a system for
component based aggregation of medication orders in accordance with one or
more
embodiments. Not all of the depicted components may be required, however, and
one or
more embodiments may include additional components not shown in the figure.
Variations
in the arrangement and type of the components may be made without departing
from the
spirit or scope of the claims as set forth herein. Additional, different or
fewer components
may be provided.
[0051] The user interface 500 includes a preparation queue 510, a selected
order field 520,
and an information display area 530. The preparation queue 510 lists the
orders that need to
be prepared, e.g. by a healthcare professional. The selected order field 520
may display an
order that was selected by a healthcare professional, or an order that the
healthcare
professional has started to prepare. The information display area 530 may
display
information to the healthcare professional that is relevant to the selected
order.
[0052] In operation, the user interface 500 may be displayed on the
electronic device 140B
that is located in the medication preparation area, e.g. to facilitate a
healthcare professional
with preparing ordered medications in a manner that minimizes any wasted
amounts of
component medications. For example, when the healthcare professional selects
an order from
the preparation queue 510, or otherwise indicates that the preparation of an
order listed in the
queue has begun, e.g. by scanning a label or container associated with the
order, the user
interface 500 displays the selected order in the selected order field 520. In
addition, if there
are any other orders in the preparation queue 510 that indicate the component
medication that
is used to prepare the selected order, e.g. in Fig. 5 "Vancomycin," the user
interface 500
displays the additional orders in the information display area 530. In this
manner, the
healthcare professional can prepare the orders in aggregate, which may
minimize the amount
of the component medication that is wasted, e.g. as opposed to if the orders
are prepared
separately.
[0053] Alternatively, or in addition, the preparation queue 510 may be
reordered such that
the selected order, and any other orders that indicate the component
medication of the
selected order, are displayed at the top of the queue. Thus, in Fig. 5, the
preparation queue
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510 may be reordered such that the "Vancomycin lgm/NS 50mL" order is displayed
first in
the preparation queue 510, and the "Vancomycin Igm/NS 250mL" order is
displayed second
in the preparation queue 510.
[0054] FIG. 6 conceptually illustrates electronic system 600 with which one
or more
embodiments of the subject technology may be implemented. Electronic system
600, for
example, may be, or may be a part of, the POE system 110, the PIS 120, the
healthcare
devices I30A-F, the electronic device 140A that is located in the medication
storage area, the
electronic device 140B that is located in the medication preparation area, a
desktop computer,
a laptop computer, a tablet computer, a phone, a personal digital assistant
(PDA), or generally
any electronic device that transmits signals over a network. Such an
electronic system
includes various types of computer readable media and interfaces for various
other types of
computer readable media. Electronic system 600 includes bus 608, processing
unit(s) 612,
system memory 604, read-only memory (ROM) 610, permanent storage device 602,
input
device interface 614, output device interface 606, and network interface 616,
or subsets and
variations thereof.
[0055] Bus 608 collectively represents all system, peripheral, and chipset
buses that
communicatively connect the numerous internal devices of electronic system
600. In one or
more embodiments, bus 608 communicatively connects processing unit(s) 612 with
ROM
610, system memory 604, and permanent storage device 602. From these various
memory
units, processing unit(s) 612 retrieves instructions to execute and data to
process in order to
execute the processes of the subject disclosure. The processing unit(s) can be
a single
processor or a multi-core processor in different embodiments.
[0056] ROM 610 stores static data and instructions that are needed by
processing unit(s)
612 and other modules of the electronic system. Permanent storage device 602,
on the other
hand, is a read-and-write memory device. This device is a non-volatile memory
unit that
stores instructions and data even when electronic system 600 is off. One or
more
embodiments of the subject disclosure use a mass-storage device (such as a
magnetic or
optical disk and its corresponding disk drive) as permanent storage device
602.
[0057] Other embodiments use a removable storage device (such as a floppy
disk, flash
drive, and its corresponding disk drive) as permanent storage device 602. Like
permanent
storage device 602, system memory 604 is a read-and-write memory device.
However,
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unlike storage device 602, system memory 604 is a volatile read-and-write
memory, such as
random access memory. System memory 604 stores any of the instructions and
data that
processing unit(s) 612 needs at runtime. In one or more embodiments, the
processes of the
subject disclosure are stored in system memory 604, permanent storage device
602, and/or
ROM 610. From these various memory units, processing unit(s) 612 retrieves
instructions to
execute and data to process in order to execute the processes of one or more
embodiments.
[0058] Bus 608 also connects to input and output device interfaces 614 and
606. Input
device interface 614 enables a user to communicate information and select
commands to the
electronic system. Input devices used with input device interface 614 include,
for example,
alphanumeric keyboards, pointing devices (also called "cursor control
devices"), scanning
devices, such as bar code scanners, RFID scanners, or generally any device
that can receive
input. Output device interface 606 enables, for example, the display of images
generated by
electronic system 600. Output devices used with output device interface 606
include, for
example, printers and display devices, such as a liquid crystal display (LCD),
a light emitting
diode (LED) display, an organic light emitting diode (OLED) display, a
flexible display, a
flat panel display, a solid state display, a projector, or any other device
for outputting
information. One or more embodiments may include devices that function as both
input and
output devices, such as a touch screen. In these embodiments, feedback
provided to the user
can be any form of sensory feedback, such as visual feedback, auditory
feedback, or tactile
feedback; and input from the user can be received in any form, including
acoustic, speech, or
tactile input.
[0059] Finally, as shown in FIG. 6, bus 608 also couples electronic system
600 to a
network (not shown) through network interface 616. In this manner, the
computer can be a
part of a network of computers (such as a local area network ("LAN"), a wide
area network
("WAN"), or an Intranet, or a network of networks, such as the Internet. Any
or all
components of electronic system 600 can be used in conjunction with the
subject disclosure.
[00601 Many of the above-described features and applications may be
implemented as
software processes that are specified as a set of instructions recorded on a
computer readable
storage medium (alternatively referred to as computer-readable media, machine-
readable
media, or machine-readable storage media). When these instructions are
executed by one or
more processing unit(s) (e.g., one or more processors, cores of processors, or
other processing
units), they cause the processing unit(s) to perform the actions indicated in
the instructions.
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Examples of computer readable media include, but are not limited to, RAM, ROM,
read-only
compact discs (CD-ROM), recordable compact discs (CD-R), rewritable compact
discs (CD-
RW), read-only digital versatile discs (e.g., DVD-ROM, dual-layer DVD-ROM), a
variety of
recordable/rewritable DVDs (e.g., DVD-RAM, DVD-RW, DVD+RW, etc.), flash memory
(e.g., SD cards, mini-SD cards, micro-SD cards, etc.), magnetic and/or solid
state hard drives,
ultra density optical discs, any other optical or magnetic media, and floppy
disks. In one or
more embodiments, the computer readable media does not include carrier waves
and
electronic signals passing wirelessly or over wired connections, or any other
ephemeral
signals. For example, the computer readable media may be entirely restricted
to tangible,
physical objects that store information in a form that is readable by a
computer. In one or
more embodiments, the computer readable media is non-transitory computer
readable media,
computer readable storage media, or non-transitory computer readable storage
media.
100611 In one or more embodiments, a computer program product (also known as a
program, software, software application, script, or code) can be written in
any form of
programming language, including compiled or interpreted languages, declarative
or
procedural languages, and it can be deployed in any form, including as a stand
alone program
or as a module, component, subroutine, object, or other unit suitable for use
in a computing
environment. A computer program may, but need not, correspond to a file in a
file system.
A program can be stored in a portion of a file that holds other programs or
data (e.g., one or
more scripts stored in a markup language document), in a single file dedicated
to the program
in question, or in multiple coordinated files (e.g., files that store one or
more modules, sub
programs, or portions of code). A computer program can be deployed to be
executed on one
computer or on multiple computers that are located at one site or distributed
across multiple
sites and interconnected by a communication network.
100621 While the above discussion primarily refers to microprocessor or
multi-core
processors that execute software, one or more embodiments are performed by one
or more
integrated circuits, such as application specific integrated circuits (ASICs)
or field
programmable gate arrays (FPGAs). In one or more embodiments, such integrated
circuits
execute instructions that are stored on the circuit itself
[0063] Those of skill in the art would appreciate that the various
illustrative blocks,
modules, elements, components, methods, and algorithms described herein may be
implemented as electronic hardware, computer software, or combinations of
both. To
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illustrate this interchangeability of hardware and software, various
illustrative blocks,
modules, elements, components, methods, and algorithms have been described
above
generally in terms of their functionality. Whether such functionality is
implemented as
hardware or software depends upon the particular application and design
constraints imposed
on the overall system. Skilled artisans may implement the described
functionality in varying
ways for each particular application. Various components and blocks may be
arranged
differently (e.g., arranged in a different order, or partitioned in a
different way) all without
departing from the scope of the subject technology.
[0064] It is understood that any specific order or hierarchy of blocks in
the processes
disclosed is an illustration of example approaches. Based upon design
preferences, it is
understood that the specific order or hierarchy of blocks in the processes may
be rearranged,
or that all illustrated blocks be performed. Any of the blocks may be
performed
simultaneously. In one or more embodiments, multitasking and parallel
processing may be
advantageous. Moreover, the separation of various system components in the
embodiments
described above should not be understood as requiring such separation in all
embodiments,
and it should be understood that the described program components and systems
can
generally be integrated together in a single software product or packaged into
multiple
software products.
[0065] As used herein, the phrase "at least one of' preceding a series of
items, with the
term "and" or "or" to separate any of the items, modifies the list as a whole,
rather than each
member of the list (i.e., each item). The phrase "at least one of' does not
require selection of
at least one of each item listed; rather, the phrase allows a meaning that
includes at least one
of any one of the items, and/or at least one of any combination of the items,
and/or at least
one of each of the items. By way of example, the phrases "at least one of A,
B, and C" or "at
least one of A, B, or C" each refer to only A, only B, or only C; any
combination of A, B, and
C; and/or at least one of each of A, B, and C.
[0066] The predicate words "configured to", "operable to", and "programmed to"
do not
imply any particular tangible or intangible modification of a subject, but,
rather, are intended
to be used interchangeably, in one or more embodiments, a processor configured
to monitor
and control an operation or a component may also mean the processor being
programmed to
monitor and control the operation or the processor being operable to monitor
and control the
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operation. Likewise, a processor configured to execute code can be construed
as a processor
programmed to execute code or operable to execute code.
[0067] A phrase such as -an aspect" does not imply that such aspect is
essential to the
subject technology or that such aspect applies to all configurations of the
subject
technology. A disclosure relating to an aspect may apply to all
configurations, or one or
more configurations. An aspect may provide one or more examples of the
disclosure. A
phrase such as an -aspect" may refer to one or more aspects and vice versa. A
phrase such as
an -embodiment" does not imply that such embodiment is essential to the
subject technology
or that such embodiment applies to all configurations of the subject
technology. A disclosure
relating to an embodiment may apply to all embodiments, or one or more
embodiments. An
embodiment may provide one or more examples of the disclosure. A phrase such
an
-embodiment" may refer to one or more embodiments and vice versa. A phrase
such as a
-configuration" does not imply that such configuration is essential to the
subject technology
or that such configuration applies to all configurations of the subject
technology. A
disclosure relating to a configuration may apply to all configurations, or one
or more
configurations. A configuration may provide one or more examples of the
disclosure. A
phrase such as a -configuration" may refer to one or more configurations and
vice versa.
[0068] The word "exemplary" is used herein to mean "serving as an example,
instance, or
illustration." Any embodiment described herein as "exemplary" or as an
"example" is not
necessarily to be construed as preferred or advantageous over other
embodiments.
Furthermore, to the extent that the term "include," "have," or the like is
used in the
description or the claims, such term is intended to be inclusive in a manner
similar to the term
"comprise" as "comprise" is interpreted when employed as a transitional word
in a claim.
[0069] All structural and functional equivalents to the elements of the
various aspects
described throughout this disclosure that are known or later come to be known
to those of
ordinary skill in the art are intended to be encompassed by the claims.
Moreover, nothing
disclosed herein is intended to be dedicated to the public regardless of
whether such
disclosure is explicitly recited in the claims.
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Date Recue/Date Received 2020-09-16
CA 02913040 2015-11-19
WO 2014/189856
PCT/1JS2014/038654
100701 The previous description is provided to enable any person skilled in
the art to
practice the various aspects described herein. Various modifications to these
aspects will be
readily apparent to those skilled in the art, and the generic principles
defined herein may be
applied to other aspects. Thus, the claims are not intended to be limited to
the aspects shown
herein, but are to be accorded the full scope consistent with the language
claims, wherein
reference to an element in the singular is not intended to mean "one and only
one" unless
specifically so stated, but rather "one or more." Unless specifically stated
otherwise, the term
"some" refers to one or more. Pronouns in the masculine (e.g., his) include
the feminine and
neuter gender (e.g., her and its) and vice versa. Headings and subheadings, if
any, are used
for convenience only and do not limit the subject disclosure.
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