Safety Features for Medical Devices Requiring Assistance and Supervision
An automatic locking system for a medical treatment device helps to ensure that an assistant is present during treatment of a patient. Among the features disclosed biometric authentication to verify that a trained assistant is present, a presence detector to ensure the assistant is continuously present during treatment, and warning and recovery processes that allow intermittent lapses in the continuous presence of the assistant.
1 . A medical device, comprising:
a medical treatment component;
a monitoring system configured to receive data from sensors to confirm the status of a patient or a helper, where the patient receiving treatment by the medical treatment component and the helper is a different person from the patient;
the monitoring system including a video camera positioned to view a scene containing a helper or a patient; and
a controller programmed to implement an image classification engine to process video images from the video camera during a time when the medical treatment component is operative to deliver therapy to a patient;
the controller being programmed to classify said processed video images to identify specific conditions and generate a signal indicative of an abnormal condition in response thereto.
2 . The device of claim 1 , wherein one of the specific conditions includes a presence or non-presence of a helper.
3 . The device of claim 1 , wherein one of the specific conditions includes a pattern of presences or non-presences of a helper over a period of time.
4 . The device of claim 1 wherein one of the specific conditions includes a predetermined body temperature profile pattern.
5 . The device of claim 1 wherein one of the specific conditions includes a patient breathing rate.
6 . The device of claim 1 wherein one of the specific conditions includes a pathological condition of a patient.
7 . The device of claim 1 wherein one of the specific conditions includes a helper falling asleep.
8 . The device of claim 1 , wherein the controller is programmed to create a cell phone message in response to said signal.
9 . The device of claim 1 , wherein the controller is programmed to an alarm in response to said signal.
10 . The device of claim 1 , wherein the controller is programmed to recognize a face of the helper.
11 . The device of claim 10 , wherein the controller is programmed to prevent use of the medical treatment component responsively to failing to recognize a face of a helper.
12 . The device of claim 3 , wherein the pattern of presences is determined by a stored schedule based on time of day.