Method for determining care and prevention pathways for clinical management of wounds
AssigneeBristol-Myers Squibb Company
InventorRonald J. Shannon
Life of this patent
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Abstract
The present invention relates to methods for consistently designating appropriate treatment protocols for patients, particularly protocols involving wounds or wound prevention. Specifically, the invention relates to methods wherein a patient condition such as a wound is assessed against defined scales for classifying and grading, which assessment is used in a visual decision tree device to identify one or more components of a treatment protocol.
Claims10
A method of identifying a wound care protocol for a given wound or wound prevention protocol appropriate for a given patient comprising:
- classifying the wound or patient against a defined scale for a first wound factor, which is a defined wound assessment factor or defined wound risk assessment factor to obtain a wound classification;
- grading the wound or patient against defined scales for one or more second wound factors, which are wound assessment factors or wound risk assessment factors;
- and
- operating a mechanical visual decision tree device to show a decision or visual decision tree corresponding to the wound classification or to a scale for a wound assessment factor, wherein the visual decision tree device identifies at least one component of a treatment protocol for the graded wound factors.
A visual decision tree device for identifying a wound care protocol for a given wound or wound prevention protocol appropriate for a given patient comprising:
- a mechanical device for identifying and displaying one of at least two decisions or visual decision trees based on one or more inputted wound factors according to a defined scale,
- wherein the visual decision tree device identifies at least one component of a treatment protocol for the graded wound factors;
- and wherein the mechanical device comprises at least one card on which the decisions or visual decision trees and values for a wound factor are printed;
- and
- a sleeve in which the card slides having at least two openings, the first opening alignable separately with separate wound factor values, and the second opening alignable with the distinct decisions on visual decision trees depending on the alignment with the first openings.
A method of identifying a wound prevention protocol appropriate for a given patient comprising:
- classifying the patient against a defined scale for a first wound risk assessment factor to obtain a wound classification;
- grading the patient against defined scales for one or more second wound risk assessment factors;
- and
- operating a mechanical visual decision tree device to show a decision or visual decision tree corresponding to a scale for a wound risk assessment factor, wherein the visual decision tree device identifies at least one component of a treatment protocol for the graded wound risk assessment factors.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.