JP7745148B2 - Hospital reservation system, hospital reservation program, and hospital reservation method - Google Patents

Description

Currently, there is technology that uses reservation information and location information to allow clients to check in at the medical facility they have booked.

Patent Document 1 discloses that "as shown in Figures 5 and 6, the application server 32 displays a 'check-in' input button on the display unit 68 of the communication terminal 60" (paragraph 0071), and that "the web reservation system 30 may recognize that a client has visited a medical facility based on predetermined information transmitted from the communication terminal 60 to the web reservation system 30 (for example, location information of the communication terminal 60)" (paragraph 0071).

JP 2022-023545 A

Patent Document 1 discloses displaying a button that allows patients to check in to the hospital around the time of their appointment based on hospital reservation information. However, because only the appointment time is used, check-in is possible even if the patient is at home, far from the hospital. It also discloses automatic check-in based on location information. However, Patent Document 1 has the problem that patients may forget the date of their appointment and be unable to check in at all. Furthermore, even if they are able to check in, there is the problem that they cannot be examined if their insurance eligibility has expired or if they have committed any prohibited acts before the examination.

To address the above issues, the present invention aims to provide a new technology that enables information sharing related to medical appointments.

In order to solve the above problems, the present invention provides a hospital reservation system that accepts appointments for medical examinations,
The hospital reservation system comprises a reservation information receiving means, a notification means, and a database,
The reservation information receiving means sets the reservation date and time from the patient's terminal or a terminal in the hospital, and registers the reservation information linked to the patient's terminal in the database;
The notification means notifies the patient's terminal based on the appointment date and time.

The present invention also provides a hospital reservation program for accepting appointments, comprising:
A computer is made to function as a reservation information receiving means, a notification means, and a database;
The reservation information receiving means sets the reservation date and time from the patient's terminal or a terminal in the hospital, and registers the reservation information linked to the patient's terminal in the database;
The notification means notifies the patient's terminal based on the appointment date and time.

The present invention also provides a hospital reservation method for accepting appointments, comprising:
A hospital reservation method having a database includes a reservation information receiving step and a notification step,
In the reservation information receiving step, the reservation date and time is set from the patient's terminal or a terminal in the hospital, and the reservation information linked to the patient's terminal is registered in the database;
In the notification step, a notification is sent to the patient's terminal based on the appointment date and time.

With this configuration, patients can receive notifications of their appointment based on the appointment date and time, ensuring they don't forget to come in for their appointment.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the reservation information includes provisional reservation information and final reservation information,
The reservation information receiving means registers a plurality of pieces of reservation information, each having a different reservation date and time, in the database from a terminal in the hospital,
The notification means notifies the patient's terminal of the final reservation based on the provisional reservation information,
The final reservation information based on the selected provisional reservation information is registered in the database from the patient's terminal.

This configuration allows patients to confirm their appointment at a date and time when they are sure they can be seen.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the database stores the patient's health insurance card verification information;
The notification means issues a notification regarding insurance qualification confirmation based on the insurance qualification card confirmation information and the reservation information.

With this configuration, notifications regarding medical appointments can be sent based on the contents of the health insurance card confirmation information.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the reservation information is linked to examination information,
The notification means notifies the examinee's terminal based on the examination information and the appointment date and time.

This configuration allows notifications regarding examination reservations to be sent according to the content of the examination information.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the hospital reservation system includes an examination order updating means,
The examination order update means determines examination order information for examinees who will undergo a plurality of examinations based on examination reservation information for each examination for the plurality of examinees;
The notification means notifies the examinee's terminal based on the test order information.

With this configuration, the test order information for a patient undergoing multiple tests can be determined using the test reservation information for those patients. This reduces the waiting time for tests for patients.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the hospital reservation system includes a plurality of examination management devices and an examination order updating means,
the plurality of examination management devices manage examination reservation information including examination reservations of a plurality of examinees for each examination;
the examination order update means updates the examination order information for the second examinee based on the examination status of the examination order information for the first examinee and the examination reservation information for each examination;
An instruction to update the examination reservation information is transmitted to the examination management device based on the updated examination order information.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the examination management device receives the examination status of the examination order information for the first examinee, and updates the examination reservation information for a test that has been changed among the examination statuses based on the examination status;
The examination order updating means updates the examination order information for the second examinee based on the examination reservation information for each of the examinations including the updated examination reservation information.

With this configuration, the test order for the second patient can be updated according to the test status of the first patient. Furthermore, by sending the updated test order information to the test management device, the test reservation information of the test management device can also be updated. This allows the test order for patients to be changed flexibly in response to changes in the test status of other patients.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the hospital reservation system further comprises reservation information reference means, location information comparison means, and output means,
the database stores location information of the hospital and the reservation information;
the reservation information reference means references reservation information linked to the patient,
the location information matching means receives the user's current location and matches the user's current location with the location information of the hospital;
The output means outputs an output corresponding to the result of the reference to the reservation information and the result of the comparison of the location information.

This configuration allows reservation information to be referenced and location information to be verified, simplifying the proper check-in procedures at hospitals.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the database further stores a message corresponding to the reservation information reference result or the location information collation result in association with the collation result,
The reference to the appointment information is a reference to whether or not appointment information linked to the patient exists,
The collation of the location information is a collation of whether or not the current location of the user is within a range of a predetermined latitude, longitude, or radius from the location information of the hospital,
The output means further
If the reservation information exists in the reference and is included in the range in the comparison, a message corresponding to the comparison result and an interface for accepting check-in corresponding to the reservation information are output.
If the reservation information does not exist in the reference or is not included in the range in the comparison, a message corresponding to the comparison result is output.

This configuration allows appropriate messages to be presented to users, simplifying the proper check-in procedures at hospitals.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the hospital reservation system further comprises a patient selection reception means,
The database further stores the patient in association with the user,
the patient selection receiving means receives the selection of the patient,
The reservation information reference means further references reservation information linked to the selected patient.

This configuration makes it possible to manage appointments for multiple patients and simplifies the proper check-in procedures at hospitals.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the interface simultaneously accepts check-ins corresponding to multiple appointment information linked to the patient.

This configuration allows check-in for multiple appointments, simplifying the appropriate check-in procedures at hospitals.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the hospital reservation system further comprises a patient selection reception means,
The database further stores the patient in association with the user,
the patient selection receiving means receives the selection of the patient,
The interface further simultaneously accepts check-ins corresponding to multiple appointment information linked to the selected patient.

This configuration allows check-in to accommodate multiple patient appointments, simplifying the appropriate check-in procedures at hospitals.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the hospital reservation system further comprises a current location acquisition means,
The current location acquisition means further acquires the current location of the user at regular intervals,
The location information checking means further checks whether the current location of the user is within a range of a predetermined latitude, longitude or radius from the location information of the hospital,
The current location acquisition means further stops acquiring the current location of the user when it is verified that the current location of the user is included within the range.

This configuration allows for regular location information verification, simplifying the proper check-in procedures at hospitals.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the current location acquisition means
a current location acquisition request means for requesting acquisition of the current location of the user;
a current location periodic acquisition means for acquiring the current location of the user at regular intervals in response to the request,
Furthermore, when the current location periodic acquisition means receives the request, it continues to acquire the current location of the user even after the acquisition of the current location of the user has been stopped.

This configuration allows location information to be collated periodically upon request, simplifying the proper check-in procedures at hospitals.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the hospital reservation system further comprises a deferred payment accepting means,
The deferred payment receiving means receives deferred payment of the examination fee from the patient,
The database stores information indicating that the deferred payment has been accepted, linked to the patient's reservation information.

This configuration allows users to pay for their medical fees later, simplifying the appropriate payment procedures at hospitals.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the database further stores payment information linked to the user,
The deferred payment accepting means further uses the payment information to settle the patient's deferred payment for the medical fee.

This configuration allows users to register information for deferred payment of medical fees, simplifying the appropriate payment procedures at hospitals.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the hospital reservation system further comprises: an available reception time information checking means;
The database further stores information about the hospital's available hours of operation,
the reception available time information checking means checks the current time against the reception available time information,
The output means further outputs an output corresponding to the result of checking the available reception time information.

This configuration allows check-in to occur at a set time, simplifying the appropriate check-in procedures at hospitals.

The present invention provides a new technology that enables information sharing related to medical appointments.

1 is a system configuration diagram of a hospital reservation system according to an embodiment of the present invention. 1 is a hardware configuration diagram of a hospital reservation device, a hospital management device, and a user terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an example of information stored in a database according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an example of information stored in a database according to an embodiment of the present invention. 10 is a diagram illustrating an example of a screen display according to an embodiment of the present invention. 1 is a flowchart for hospital check-in according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 10 is a system configuration diagram of a hospital reservation system according to another embodiment of the present invention. 10 is a flowchart illustrating a process for updating inspection order information according to another embodiment of the present invention.

(Embodiment 1)
The hospital reservation system of the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Note that the embodiment shown below is an example of the present invention, and the present invention is not limited to the embodiment below, and various configurations can be adopted.

For example, while this embodiment describes the configuration and operation of a hospital reservation system, similarly configured methods, devices, programs, storage media, etc. can also achieve similar effects. The program may also be stored on a storage medium. Using this storage medium, the program can be installed on a computer, for example. Here, the storage medium storing the program may be a non-transitory storage medium, such as a CD-ROM.

The present invention can be used to accept check-ins from patients at hospitals. Check-ins can be accepted at hospitals of any size, including university hospitals and privately run hospitals.

In this embodiment, patients can check in from their own terminal device via the network, allowing them to check in from inside their own car parked in the hospital parking lot without having to enter the hospital.

Figure 1 is a schematic diagram showing the configuration of a hospital reservation system in this embodiment. In this embodiment, a hospital reservation device 2 and a user terminal 4 are communicatively connected via a network NW, and the hospital reservation device 2 is connected to a hospital management device 3 via a local area network. The hospital reservation device 2 is also connected, via wired or wireless connections, to a hospital reservation database DB2 that manages hospital information, reservation information, etc., and the hospital management device 3 is also connected, via wired or wireless connections, to a hospital management database DB3 that manages patient information, reservation information, etc.

The hospital reservation device 2 is composed of one or more servers. When the hospital reservation device 2 is composed of multiple servers, it is composed, for example, of a gateway server connected to the hospital management device 3 and a cloud server connected to the user terminal 4. The cloud server may be a virtual server that can be built using AWS (registered trademark), for example. The gateway server polls AWS at regular intervals to obtain information. When using an AWS virtual server, the hospital reservation system 1 does not have a hospital reservation database DB2, and information such as the user's current location may be stored within AWS.

In this embodiment, the hospital reservation device 2 and the hospital management device 3, which are partly or entirely contained in the hospital's local area network, are collectively referred to as the hospital device 8, and the hospital device 8 includes hardware and functional components as shown in FIG. 2(a). That is, the hospital device 8 includes, as hardware components, an arithmetic unit (CPU (Central Processing Unit)) 81 and a main memory device (RAM (Random Access Memory)) 82 as working memory.

The hospital device 8 further includes an auxiliary storage device 83 such as an HDD (Hard Disk Drive), SSD (Solid State Drive), or flash memory that rewritably stores an OS (Operating System), application programs, and various information (including data), a communication control unit 84, and a communication interface (IF) unit 85 such as a NIC (Network Interface Card).

The terminal device 9 (user terminal 4) includes hardware and functional components as shown in FIG. 2(b). The terminal device 9 includes, as hardware components, a processing unit (CPU) 91 and a main memory device (RAM) 92 as working memory.

The terminal device 9 further includes an auxiliary storage device 93 such as an HDD, SSD, or flash memory that rewritably stores the OS, application programs, and various information (including data), a communication control unit 94, a communication interface (IF) unit 95 such as a NIC, a display control unit 96, a display unit 97, an information input/designation unit 98, a GNSS (Global Navigation Satellite System) module 99, etc.

In this embodiment, as an example, the user terminal 4 is a smartphone on which a dedicated application is installed. Using the dedicated application downloaded to their smartphone, the user sends their current location to the hospital reservation device 2 to check in at the hospital. The hospital reservation device 2 accepts a request to view reservation information, the user's current location, etc. via the dedicated application on the user terminal 4.

The hospital reservation device 2 comprises a reservation information reception means 201, a reservation information reference means 202, a location information matching means 203, an output means 204, a check-in reception means 205, and an available reception time information matching means 206.

The hospital management device 3 includes a reservation information transmission means 301, a check-in result reception means 302, and a deferred payment reception means 303.

The user terminal 4 includes a current location acquisition means 401 and a patient selection reception means 402. Furthermore, the current location acquisition means 401 includes a current location acquisition request means 401a and a current location periodic acquisition means 401b.

The appointment information sending means 301 sends appointment information stored in the hospital management database DB3 to the appointment information receiving means 201. After the user visits the hospital, appointment information is entered by hospital staff such as medical administrators and nurses via the hospital management device 3 and stored in the hospital management database DB3. Figure 3(b) is an example of appointment information stored in the hospital management database DB3. In this embodiment, the appointment information includes a patient ID for identifying the patient, the department the patient plans to visit at the hospital, the appointment time the patient has booked, status information indicating whether the patient has checked in, information indicating this is the patient's first visit, and information indicating whether the patient's health insurance card has not been confirmed. The patient ID may include the patient's patient card number.

The reservation information sending means 301 may send reservation information to the reservation information receiving means 201 at any time, or may send it periodically. When sending periodically, it is possible to send it at a specific time in the morning, or at regular intervals. In this embodiment, the reservation information sending means 301 sends reservation information periodically, and the reservation information receiving means 201 stores the received reservation information in the hospital reservation database DB2. Furthermore, when the reservation information reference means 202 references reservation information, it may request reservation information from the hospital management device 3, and the reservation information sending means 301 may send the reservation information.

When the appointment information reference means 202 receives a request to reference appointment information via the user terminal, it references the appointment information linked to the patient. In this embodiment, it references the hospital appointment database DB2 to determine whether appointment information linked to the patient exists. The user terminal 4 sends the appointment information reference request to the appointment information reference means 202 via a downloaded dedicated application. For example, the reference request may be sent by pressing a specific button in the dedicated application.

The output means 204 produces output corresponding to the reference results of the appointment information reference means 202. Figure 4 shows an example of output corresponding to various results. By storing outputs corresponding to various results in the hospital appointment database DB2, as shown in Figure 4, any output can be produced. For example, if the appointment information reference means 202 is unable to reference the hospital appointment database DB2, it outputs a message regarding a system error (status ID: 05). Furthermore, if the appointment information reference means 202 references the hospital appointment database DB2 and determines that no appointment information exists, it outputs a message indicating that no appointment exists (status ID: 04-1).

If the appointment information reference means 202 determines that appointment information linked to the patient exists, the output means 204 displays a screen like that shown in Figure 5(a) on the user terminal 4.

The current location acquisition means 401 acquires the user's current location via the GNSS module 99. In this embodiment, the current location acquisition means 401 transmits the acquired current location to the location information matching means 203. For example, the current location acquisition means 401 acquires the current location by pressing a specific button in a dedicated application.

The current location acquisition means 401 may further include a current location periodic acquisition means 401b that acquires the user's current location at regular intervals in response to a request from the current location acquisition request means 401a. By acquiring the user's current location at regular intervals and transmitting it to the hospital reservation device 2, the user can check in without having to reload the screen multiple times. Specifically, when the user presses a specific button on the user terminal 4, a screen like that shown in Figure 5(a) is displayed, and the current location acquisition request means 401a requests the current location periodic acquisition means 401b to acquire the current location. Based on the current location acquisition request from the current location acquisition request means 401a, the current location periodic acquisition means 401b periodically acquires the current location while the screen shown in Figure 5(a) is displayed and transmits it to the location information matching means 203.

The location information matching means 203 receives the user's current location via the user terminal and matches the user's current location with the hospital's location information. The location information matching means 203 references the hospital's location information stored in the hospital appointment database DB2 and performs the matching. In this embodiment, the hospital appointment database DB2 stores information such as hospital location information and hospital opening hours, as shown in Figure 3(c). The location information matching means 203 matches whether the user is within a specific radius from the stored address. Alternatively, multiple specific longitude and latitude combinations may be stored, and the means 203 may match whether the user is within the range connecting the specific latitude and longitude combinations.

In this embodiment, the hospital reservation device 2 is equipped with a location information matching means 203, but the user terminal 4 may also be equipped with a location information matching means and perform location information matching. In this case, the location information matching means matches the location information using the hospital location information stored in a memory unit of the user terminal 4, such as the auxiliary memory device 93, and the current location acquired by the current location acquisition means 401.

The output means 204 outputs, for example, as shown in Figure 5(a) or (b) depending on the result of the matching by the location information matching means 203. Figure 5(a) shows a case where the user's current location is not within the range of the location information, and an interface for accepting check-ins is output but not activated. Figure 5(b) shows a case where the user's current location is within the range of the location information, and the output means 204 outputs an interface for accepting activated check-ins. Check-ins corresponding to multiple appointment information linked to a patient may be accepted simultaneously via the interface for accepting check-ins. For example, a large hospital such as a university hospital may have multiple medical departments, and a patient may have appointments with multiple medical departments at the same hospital on the same day.

The current location periodic acquisition means 401b may stop acquiring the user's current location under specified conditions. In this embodiment, the current location periodic acquisition means 401b stops acquiring the user's current location when the location information matching means 203 matches that the user's current location is within a specific range. In addition, the current location periodic acquisition means 401b may stop acquiring the user's current location when the output means 204 enables an interface that accepts check-ins. Even after the current location periodic acquisition means 401b has stopped acquiring the user's current location, if it receives a request for acquisition of the current location from the current location acquisition request means 401a, it will acquire the user's current location. By displaying a screen such as that shown in FIG. 5(a), the current location acquisition request means 401a requests the current location periodic acquisition means 401b to acquire the current location.

The patient selection receiving means 402 may accept the selection of a patient via a user terminal. As shown in Figure 3(a), a patient ID (e.g., a patient card number or patient number assigned by the hospital) is assigned to each patient at the hospital, and the patient's personal information is stored linked to the patient ID. Furthermore, a user ID is assigned to the user terminal 4 or the user's email address, etc., required to download a dedicated application, and the patient ID is stored linked to the user ID, as shown in Figure 3(d), allowing the user to select a patient. It is assumed that a user will manage appointments for multiple people. For example, it is assumed that the user of the application is a parent with small children, and that the user will manage their own appointments and those of their children.

The appointment information reference means 202 references the hospital appointment database DB2 and searches for appointment information linked to the patient whose selection has been accepted by the patient selection acceptance means 402.

The output means 204 outputs an interface for checking in patients whose selection has been accepted by the patient selection acceptance means 402. For example, the user checks in corresponding to all appointment information for the day via a "return visit acceptance" interface such as that shown in Figure 5(f) output by the output means 204.

The deferred payment acceptance means 303 accepts deferred payment of the consultation fee from the patient. The hospital management device 3 may also be connected to a kiosk terminal located within the hospital. The kiosk terminal is also included in the hospital's local area network. The deferred payment acceptance means 303 accepts deferred payment via user operation of the kiosk terminal. The deferred payment acceptance means 303 links information indicating that deferred payment has been accepted to the patient's appointment information and stores it in the hospital management database DB3. Alternatively, deferred payment may be accepted from the user terminal 4 via the hospital appointment device 2 without operating the kiosk terminal.

The hospital reservation database DB2 or hospital management database DB3 may store payment information linked to the user. Payment information is information used for deferred payment, and could be a credit card number, for example. By storing payment information linked to the user, as shown in Figure 3(e), deferred payment becomes possible. Because payment information is stored linked to the user, if multiple patients are stored linked to the user, deferred payment of consultation fees for multiple patients becomes possible.

The available reception time information matching means 206 matches the current time with available reception time information. Available reception time information is the time period during which patients can check in for their appointments, and matching can be performed by storing this information in the hospital appointment database DB2 as available time information or appointment acceptance time information, as shown in Figure 3(c).

Available time information is the time period during which patients can check in to the hospital. In Figure 3(c), this is from 8:05 to 15:30. The available reception time information comparison means 206 checks whether the current time is within the available reception time information range of 8:05 to 15:30. For example, if the current time is 20:00, it is not within the range, so the output means 204 outputs a message (status ID: 01-3) indicating that it is outside the available reception time. The available reception time information can be set as desired by the hospital, etc.

The appointment reception time information is the time period during which patients can check in for their appointments based on their scheduled appointment time. In Figure 3(c), this ranges from -30 minutes to +10 minutes. The available reception time information matching means 206 checks whether the current time, for an appointment scheduled for 9:00, falls within the range of 8:30 to 9:10, derived from the appointment time information and appointment reception time information. For example, in Figure 3(b), the appointment time for reception number B00011 is 3:00 PM, so the user must check in between 2:30 PM and 3:10 PM. Therefore, if a user attempts to check in for appointment number B00011 at 3:30 PM, the current time is not within the range, and the output means 204 outputs a message (status ID: 04-5) indicating that the appointment is outside the scheduled time, as shown in Figure 5(e). The appointment reception time information can be set arbitrarily by the hospital, etc. In addition, there may be other cases, such as when check-in is not possible after the scheduled time, or when there is no start time for check-in. Alternatively, the hospital management device 3 may compare the current time with the reservation acceptance time information, send the results to the acceptance time information comparison means 206, and the output means 204 may output a message such as that shown in Figure 5(e).

6 is a flowchart relating to hospital check-in. In this embodiment, medical appointment information relating to a medical appointment is stored as the appointment information, and processing relating to check-in is executed.
In step S 601 , the appointment information sending means 301 sends appointment information to the appointment information receiving means 201 .

In step S602, the appointment information receiving means 201 stores the received appointment information in the hospital appointment database DB2.

In step S603, the patient selection receiving means 402 receives the patient selection via the user terminal.

In step S604, a request is made to the appointment information reference means 202 to reference the medical appointment information of the patient whose selection was accepted by the patient selection acceptance means 402 in step S603.

In step S605, the appointment information reference means 202 references the medical appointment information stored in the hospital appointment database DB2 and determines whether there is medical appointment information linked to the patient whose selection has been accepted by the patient selection acceptance means 402.

In step S606, the output means 204 outputs a message corresponding to the reference result of the appointment information reference means 202. If there is no medical appointment information linked to the patient whose selection has been accepted by the patient selection acceptance means 402, a message indicating that no medical appointment information exists is output. In addition, medical appointment information contains information indicating status such as accepted or not accepted, information indicating that the patient is a first-time patient, information indicating that the health insurance card has not been confirmed, etc., so the output means 204 outputs messages corresponding to these. If there is medical appointment information linked to the patient whose selection has been accepted by the patient selection acceptance means 402, a message regarding the medical appointment information and location information is output, as shown in Figure 5(a). Furthermore, if there is medical appointment information linked to the patient whose selection has been accepted by the patient selection acceptance means 402, but procedures are required because it is a first-time patient, a message such as that shown in Figure 5(d) is output.

In step S607, the current location acquisition means 401 acquires the user's current location.

In step S608, the current location acquisition means 401 transmits the acquired current location to the location information matching means 203.

In step S609, the location information matching means 203 matches the received current location with the hospital location information stored in the hospital reservation database DB2.

In step S610, the output means 204 outputs a message or interface corresponding to the result of the comparison by the location information comparison means 203. In this embodiment, if the user's current location is not within the range of the location information, a message is output indicating that the location information cannot be referenced or urging the user to move so that it is within the range, as shown in Figure 5(a), and the interface for accepting check-ins is not enabled. Also, if the user's current location is within the range of the location information, the interface for accepting check-ins is enabled, as shown in Figure 5(b). By pressing the enabled interface, an instruction to accept check-in can be sent via the user terminal.

In this embodiment, the Loop process in FIG. 6 (steps S607 to S610) is performed by displaying the screen in FIG. 5(a) on the user terminal. In other words, the current location periodic acquisition means 401b acquires the user's current location at regular intervals, and the location information matching means 203 performs the matching. If the location information matching means 203 matches that the user's current location is within the range of the location information, the Loop process (the process in which the current location periodic acquisition means 401b acquires the user's current location at regular intervals) may be stopped.

Even after Loop processing has stopped, the screen shown in Figure 5(a) may be reloaded (the current location acquisition request means 401a requests the current location periodic acquisition means 401b to acquire the user's current location), thereby restarting Loop processing (the current location periodic acquisition means 401b acquiring the user's current location at regular intervals). Furthermore, steps S607 to S609 may be performed on the user terminal.

In step S611, a check-in request is made via the enabled interface output by the output means 204. The user makes a check-in request by pressing the "Accept return visit" button (the interface that accepts check-ins).

In step S612, the check-in reception means 205 receives a check-in request via an enabled interface for receiving check-ins, and performs check-in of the medical appointment information linked to the patient received by the patient selection reception means 402 in step S603.

In step S613, the output means 204 outputs a message corresponding to the check-in result. The output means 204 may output a message indicating that the reception process has not been completed and is still ongoing, a message indicating that the reception ticket and reception process has been completed as shown in Figure 5(c), or a message indicating a system error.

Furthermore, in step S613, the check-in reception means 205 transmits the check-in result to the check-in result reception means 302. The check-in result reception means 302 updates the medical appointment information stored in the check-in result hospital management database DB3 based on the received check-in result. For example, it is possible to update the status from "not received" to "received" and store the time of reception.

(Embodiment 2)
Next, in embodiment 2, a case where a patient makes a consultation appointment will be described. In embodiment 1, the appointment information stored in the hospital management database DB3 is stored in the hospital appointment database DB2, thereby enabling the patient to check in. In embodiment 2, a process is performed to store appointment information for medical treatment or examination in the database. In addition, the ID of the user terminal 4 or dedicated application to which the notification is to be sent is stored in the database as a user ID linked to the patient ID.

Figure 7 is a system configuration diagram of a hospital reservation system 1 in embodiment 2. In embodiment 2, the hospital reservation system 1 includes a hospital reservation device 2, a hospital management device 3, and a user terminal 4 (patient terminal), as well as one or more examination management devices 5. The examination management device 5 is connected to the hospital management device 3 via a local area network. The multiple examination management devices 5 are also connected, via wired or wireless connection, to each of the examination reservation databases DB5 that manage examination reservation information for each examination. Here, the examination management device 5 is composed of one or more devices that manage information about examinations in each examination department, and includes, for example, a specimen testing system, a physiological testing system, a laboratory information system (LIS), a radiology information system (RIS), and a medical image communication system (PACS).

Furthermore, the hospital reservation device 2 in embodiment 2 further includes a notification means 207 and an examination order update means 208 in addition to the functional configuration in embodiment 1. Note that in this embodiment, the examination order update means 208 is a functional configuration provided in the hospital reservation device 2, but it may also be a functional configuration provided in the hospital management device 3. Furthermore, in the following explanation, the system according to this embodiment operates each functional configuration, and parts common to embodiment 1 will be omitted.

The reservation information reception means 201 accepts input of reservation information for procedures at the hospital and registers it in a database. It accepts input of the reservation date and time from the patient's terminal (user terminal 4) or a terminal within the hospital (not shown), and registers the reservation information linked to the patient's terminal in the hospital management database DB3.

In this embodiment, reservation information includes tentative reservation information and final reservation information, and the reservation information receiving means 201 registers multiple reservation information sets with different reservation dates and times in the hospital management database DB3 from terminals within the hospital, and registers final reservation information based on the selected tentative reservation information from the patient's terminal in the hospital management database DB3.

The notification means 207 sends a notification to the patient's terminal based on the reservation information. The notification means 207 sends a notification regarding the actual reservation to the patient's terminal based on the provisional reservation information in the reservation information. In this embodiment, the notification means 207 sends a notification to the patient's terminal prompting them to register the actual reservation information based on the provisional reservation information registered by the reservation information receiving means 201, and the reservation information receiving means 201 registers the actual reservation information.

The notification means 207 also sends notifications regarding insurance eligibility confirmation based on the reservation information and insurance eligibility card confirmation information. In this embodiment, insurance eligibility card confirmation information indicating whether the patient is eligible for insurance is stored in the hospital management database DB3, and the notification means 207 acquires the insurance eligibility card confirmation information from the hospital management database DB3 based on the main reservation information in the patient's reservation information, and sends a notification to the patient's terminal based on the acquired insurance eligibility card information.

The notification means 207 also sends a notification to the patient's terminal based on the reservation date and time in the reservation information. In this embodiment, the reservation information is linked to examination information, and the notification means 207 sends a notification to the patient's terminal based on the examination information and the reservation date and time. Here, examination information is information related to the examination, and includes radiology information, physiological examination information, specimen examination information, endoscopic examination information, CT/contrast CT examination information, MRI examination information, etc. Specifically, for example, if an endoscopy examination is scheduled, the notification means 207 sends a notification to the patient's terminal a specified time before the reservation date and time as a precaution related to the examination, urging the patient to refrain from eating until a specified time before the examination.

The notification means 207 also sends notifications to the examinee's terminal based on test order information for multiple tests booked by one examinee. In this embodiment, the test order information includes one or more combinations of test identification information (test name or test ID), test time, and test status, and is linked to each examinee ID. The notification means 207 then notifies the user terminal 4 corresponding to the examinee ID of the test identification information and test time based on the test time.

The test order update means 208 determines test order information for a patient undergoing multiple tests based on test reservation information including test reservations for multiple patients for each test. In this embodiment, the test order update means 208 updates the test order information for a second patient based on the test status in the test order information for the first patient and the test reservation information for each test. Here, the test reservation information is information indicating the test schedule for each testing device, and includes multiple combinations of patients and test reservation dates and times.

The specific process for determining test order information will be described below with reference to Figure 8. Figure 8 is a flowchart showing the process of updating the test appointment information stored in advance in the test appointment database DB5 based on the test status of the first patient, thereby updating the test order information of the second patient. Note that although Figure 8 shows one test management device 5, it is assumed that an update instruction is sent to multiple test management devices 5 that are the targets of the test appointment update. Also, although it shows one user terminal 4, it is assumed that a notification is sent to multiple user terminals 4 that are the targets of the test order update.

In step S801, the test management device 5 accepts the test order information for the first patient. In this embodiment, the test management device 5 accepts the test status included in the test order information for the first patient. Here, the test status includes, for example, extension, cancellation, no change, etc., and in the case of extension, the extension time may also be included.

In step S802, the examination management device 5 updates the examination reservation information. In this embodiment, the examination management device 5 updates the examination reservation information registered in the examination reservation database DB5 based on the examination status received in step S801. Specifically, for an examination whose examination status has been changed among the received examination statuses, the examination management device 5 updates the examination reservation information for that examination based on the received examination status. For example, if the examination status of the first examinee is canceled, the examination management device 5 registers an examination reservation for the third examinee instead of the examination reservation for the first examinee. Furthermore, if the examination status of the first examinee is extended, the examination management device 5 registers an examination reservation for the third examinee with the examination reservation time changed based on the extended time.

In step S803, the examination management device 5 transmits the updated examination reservation information to the hospital management device 3. In this embodiment, the examination management device 5 transmits the updated examination reservation information in association with the ID of the examination device.

In step S804, the hospital management device 3 updates the registered examination reservation information based on the received examination reservation information. In this embodiment, the hospital management database DB3 stores examination reservation information for each examination device, and the hospital management device 3 updates the examination reservation information for the corresponding test based on the ID of the examination device linked to the received examination reservation information.

In step S805, the hospital management device 3 transmits the examination reservation information for each examination to the examination order update means 208. In this embodiment, the hospital management device 3 transmits the examination reservation information for each examination, including the examination reservation information updated in step S804, to the examination order update means 208. Note that the hospital management device 3 may transmit the examination reservation information to the examination order update means 208 when the examination reservation information is updated, or may transmit it periodically.

In step S806, the examination order update means 208 updates the examination order information for the second patient. In this embodiment, the examination order update means 208 inputs the examination appointment information for each examination, including the examination appointment information updated in step S804, into a known waiting time optimization model, and updates the examination order information for one or more second patients.

In step S807, the notification means 207 notifies the patient's terminal of the updated test order information. In this embodiment, notification is sent to the patient's terminal linked to the updated test order information.

In step S808, the examination order update means 208 sends an instruction to update the examination reservation information to the hospital management device 3. In this embodiment, the examination order update means 208 sends the examination order update instruction to the hospital management device 3, including the examination device that updated the examination reservation date and time based on the examination order information of the second patient, and the examination reservation date and time.

In step S809, the hospital management device 3 updates the examination reservation information. In this embodiment, the hospital management device 3 updates the examination reservation information stored in the hospital management database DB3 based on the examination device that updated the examination reservation date and time received in step S808 and the examination reservation date and time.

In step S810, the hospital management device 3 transmits an instruction to update the examination reservation information based on the updated examination reservation information. In this embodiment, the hospital management device 3 transmits an instruction to update the examination reservation information to the examination device that updated the examination reservation date and time received in step S808 and to the examination management device 5 that manages the examination device based on the updated examination reservation date and time.

In this embodiment, the examination management device 5 directly receives the examination status of the first examinee from a user terminal, such as a medical professional, operating the examination management device 5. However, the examination status of the first examinee may also be received indirectly from a terminal, such as a medical professional, operating the hospital management device 3. Also, the examination status of the first examinee may also be received indirectly from a user terminal 4 operated by the first examinee.

1 Hospital reservation system 2 Hospital reservation device 201 Reservation information reception means 202 Reservation information reference means 203 Location information matching means 204 Output means 205 Check-in reception means 206 Acceptable time information matching means DB2 Hospital reservation database 3 Hospital management device 301 Reservation information transmission means 302 Check-in result reception means 303 Postpaid reception means DB3 Hospital management database 4 User terminal 401 Current location acquisition means 401a Current location acquisition request means 401b Current location periodic acquisition means 402 Patient selection reception means NW Communication network

Claims (15)

A hospital reservation system that accepts appointments for medical examinations,
the hospital reservation system comprises a reservation information receiving means, a plurality of examination management devices, a notification means, a database, and an examination order updating means;
The database stores test order information;
the reservation information receiving means receives reservation information including reservation date and time, information for notifying the patient's terminal, and examination reservation information from the patient's terminal or a terminal in the hospital, and registers the information in the database;
the examination management device manages examination reservation information including examination reservations for a plurality of examinees for a certain examination;
the test order update means receives an input related to a change in test status of a test for a certain examinee, inputs a plurality of test reservation information updated in accordance with a change in the test time of the test due to the change in test status into a waiting time optimization model for reducing waiting times between a plurality of tests performed by each of a plurality of examinees, and determines test order information for each of the plurality of examinees based on an output from the waiting time optimization model;
the notification means notifies the terminals of the plurality of examinees for the plurality of examinations based on the examination order information;
The examination status is information including whether or not the examination time of the certain examinee has been changed for each of the plurality of examination management devices.
Hospital booking system. the examination order update means compares the newly determined examination order information with the original examination order information, and transmits an instruction to update the examination reservation information to the examination management device of the examination for which the examination reservation date and time has been changed.
The hospital reservation system according to claim 1 . The database stores the patient's insurance eligibility verification information;
The notification means issues a notification regarding insurance qualification confirmation based on the insurance qualification card confirmation information and the reservation information.
The hospital reservation system according to claim 1 . The reservation information is linked to examination information,
the notification means notifies the examinee's terminal based on the examination information and the appointment date and time.
The hospital reservation system according to claim 1 . the hospital reservation system further comprises a reservation information reference means, a location information comparison means, and an output means;
the database stores the hospital location information, the reservation information , and a message corresponding to the reservation information reference result or the location information comparison result, in association with the comparison result;
the reservation information reference means references reservation information linked to the patient,
the location information matching means receives the user's current location and matches the user's current location with the location information of the hospital;
The reference to the appointment information is a reference to whether or not appointment information linked to the patient exists,
The collation of the location information is a collation of whether or not the current location of the user is within a range of a predetermined latitude, longitude, or radius from the location information of the hospital,
The output means
If the reservation information exists in the reference and is included in the range in the comparison, a message corresponding to the comparison result and an interface for accepting check-in corresponding to the reservation information are output.
If the reservation information does not exist in the reference or is not included in the range in the comparison, a message corresponding to the comparison result is output.
The hospital reservation system according to claim 1 . The hospital reservation system further comprises a patient selection reception means,
the patient selection receiving means receives the selection of the patient,
The reservation information reference means further references reservation information linked to the selected patient.
The hospital reservation system according to claim 5 . the interface simultaneously accepts check-ins corresponding to a plurality of reservation information items linked to the patient;
The hospital reservation system according to claim 5 . The hospital reservation system further comprises a patient selection reception means,
the patient selection receiving means receives the selection of the patient,
The interface further simultaneously accepts check-ins corresponding to multiple appointment information items associated with the selected patient.
The hospital reservation system according to claim 7 . The hospital reservation system further comprises a current location acquisition means,
The current location acquisition means further acquires the current location of the patient at regular intervals,
The location information checking means further checks whether the patient's current location is within a predetermined range of latitude, longitude or radius based on the location information of the hospital;
The current location acquisition means further stops acquiring the current location of the examinee when the current location of the examinee is verified to be within the range.
The hospital reservation system according to claim 5 . The current location acquisition means
a current location acquisition request means for requesting acquisition of the current location of the patient;
a current location periodic acquisition means for acquiring the current location of the patient at regular intervals in response to the request,
The current location periodic acquisition means further acquires the current location of the patient when the request is received, even after the acquisition of the current location of the patient has been stopped.
The hospital reservation system according to claim 9 . The hospital reservation system further comprises a deferred payment accepting means,
The deferred payment receiving means receives deferred payment of the examination fee from the patient,
The database stores information indicating that the deferred payment has been accepted, in association with the patient's appointment information.
The hospital reservation system according to claim 1 . The database further stores payment information linked to the patient,
The deferred payment accepting means further uses the payment information to settle the deferred payment of the consultation fee of the patient.
The hospital reservation system according to claim 11 . The hospital reservation system further comprises an available reception time information checking means,
The database further stores information about the hospital's available hours of operation,
the reception available time information checking means checks the current time against the reception available time information,
The output means further outputs an output corresponding to the result of the comparison of the reception available time information.
The hospital reservation system according to claim 5 . A hospital reservation program that accepts appointments for medical examinations,
A computer is made to function as a reservation information receiving means, a plurality of examination management devices, a notification means, a database, and an examination order updating means;
The database stores test order information;
the reservation information receiving means receives reservation information including reservation date and time, information for notifying the patient's terminal, and examination reservation information from the patient's terminal or a terminal in the hospital, and registers the information in the database;
the examination management device manages examination reservation information including examination reservations for a plurality of examinees for a certain examination;
the test order update means receives an input related to a change in test status of a test for a certain examinee, inputs a plurality of test reservation information updated in accordance with a change in the test time of the test due to the change in test status into a waiting time optimization model for reducing waiting times between a plurality of tests performed by each of a plurality of examinees, and determines test order information for each of the plurality of examinees based on an output from the waiting time optimization model;
the notification means notifies the terminals of the plurality of examinees for the plurality of examinations based on the examination order information;
The examination status is information including whether or not the examination time of the certain examinee has been changed for each of the plurality of examination management devices.
Hospital booking program. A hospital reservation method executed by a hospital reservation system that accepts appointments,
the hospital reservation system comprises a reservation information receiving means, a plurality of examination management devices, a notification means, a database, and an examination order updating means;
the reservation information receiving means receives reservation information including reservation date and time, information for notifying the terminal of the patient, and examination reservation information from the terminal of the patient or a terminal in the hospital, and registers the information in the database;
The database stores test order information;
a step in which the examination management device manages examination reservation information including examination reservations for a plurality of examinees for a certain examination;
the test order update means receives an input related to a change in test status of a test for a certain examinee, inputs a plurality of test reservation information updated in accordance with a change in test time of the test due to the change in test status into a waiting time optimization model for reducing waiting times between a plurality of tests performed by each of a plurality of examinees, and determines test order information for each of the plurality of examinees based on an output from the waiting time optimization model;
the notification means notifying the terminals of the plurality of examinees of the plurality of examinations based on the examination order information;
The examination status is information including whether or not the examination time of the certain examinee has been changed for each of the plurality of examination management devices.
How to make a hospital reservation.