US 2007/0185731 A1 · System, method, and computer program product for reducing the burden on scheduling systems by forecasting a demand for medical resources using retrieved billing data

Abstract

The present invention generates a forecast factor indicating an anticipated demand for a medical resource in a medical facility during a selected time period. The invention generates the forecast factor using billing data retrieved from one or more billing data systems wherein the retrieved billing data is from a prior time period that is comparable to the selected time period. The invention may also generate a schedule of the medical resource using the determined forecast factor such that the generated schedule may substantially correspond to the anticipated demand for the medical resource during the selected time period. In addition, the invention may also generate one or more displays of the determined forecast factor to a user and may also receive a user input for selecting and/or modifying the protocol used to determine the forecast factor.

Claims34

Dependent claims

A system for optimizing a schedule of at least one medical resource in at least one medical facility using a billing data set, the system comprising:

a medical billing system comprising the billing data corresponding to at least one medical procedure being performed using the at least one medical resource in the at least one medical facility during a first time period, the data within the billing data set being indicative of a utilization of the at least one medical resource during the first time period;
and
a forecasting module in communication with said medical billing system;
wherein said forecasting module retrieves the billing data set from the medical billing system;
wherein said forecasting module converts data within the billing data set into a utilization data set corresponding to a historical demand for the at least one medical resource in the at least one medical facility during the first time period;
and
wherein said forecasting module determines a forecast factor using data within the utilization data set, the forecast factor corresponding to an expected demand for the at least one medical resource in the at least one medical facility during a second time period, the second time period being subsequent to the first time period, such that the at least one medical resource is efficiently utilized during the second time period.

4 more elements

A computer program product for optimizing a schedule of at least one medical resource in at least one medical facility by retrieving a billing data set from a medical billing system, the billing data set corresponding to at least one medical procedure being performed using the at least one medical resource in the at least one medical facility during a first time period, the data within the billing data set being indicative of a utilization of the at least one medical resource during the first time period, the computer program product comprising a computer-readable storage medium having computer-readable program code instructions stored therein comprising:

first computer instruction means for retrieving the billing data set from the medical billing system;
second computer instruction means for converting data within the billing data set into a utilization data set corresponding to a historical demand for the at least one medical resource in the at least one medical facility during the first time period;
and
third computer instruction means for determining a forecast factor using data within the utilization data set, the forecast factor corresponding to an expected demand for the at least one medical resource in the at least one medical facility during a second time period, the second time period being subsequent to the first time period, such that the at least one medical resource is efficiently utilized during the second time period.

1 more element

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

System, method, and computer program product for reducing the burden on scheduling systems by forecasting a demand for medical resources using retrieved billing data

Life of this patent

System, method, and computer program product for reducing the burden on scheduling systems by forecasting a demand for medical resources using retrieved billing data

Life of this patent

Abstract

Claims34