JP7797786B2 - Information Processing Systems - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to an information processing device, an information processing system, an information processing program, and a control method.

Japan has seen a remarkable increase in life expectancy due to improvements in living standards, sanitary conditions, and medical standards that came with the rapid economic growth following the war. This, coupled with a declining birthrate, has led to an aging society with a high aging rate. In such an aging society, an increase in people requiring nursing care or care due to illness, injury, aging, etc. (hereinafter referred to as "care recipients") is expected. In facilities such as hospitals and elderly welfare facilities (hereinafter simply referred to as "facilities"), care recipients are provided with care by caregivers, nurses, and others (hereinafter referred to as "care staff") (see, for example, Patent Document 1, etc.).

Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2012-205847

In such facilities, it is desirable to be able to easily grasp the response status of care staff. For example, by understanding the time it takes for each care staff member to respond to a care recipient, it will be possible to identify areas for improvement to provide more appropriate care.

The present invention was made in consideration of the above circumstances, and aims to provide an information processing device, information processing system, information processing program, and control method that can output information related to the response status of care staff.

The above-mentioned problems of the present invention are solved by the following means.

(1) An information processing device comprising: a first acquisition unit that acquires event information including information regarding the occurrence time of an event for a care recipient; a second acquisition unit that acquires care information including information regarding the arrival time of a staff member who will be assigned to the event for the care recipient to arrive at a predetermined location; and an output unit that outputs information regarding the time required for the staff member to arrive based on the event information and the care information.

(2) The information processing device described in (1) above, wherein the time of occurrence of the event includes the time of input indicating that a response to the event will be taken.

(3) The information processing device described in (1) or (2) above, wherein the information regarding the arrival time at the predetermined point includes information obtained based on an image.

(4) An information processing device according to any one of (1) to (3) above, wherein the arrival time is the time when the staff member enters the room of the care recipient.

(5) The information processing device described in any one of (1) to (4) above, wherein the events include at least one of the care recipient getting up, getting out of bed, falling, dropping, and leaving the room.

(6) The information processing device described in any one of (1) to (5) above, wherein the output unit outputs information regarding the response time for each staff member or each care recipient.

(7) The information processing device described in any one of (1) to (6) above, wherein the events include the care recipient getting up and getting out of bed, and the output unit outputs information regarding the response time required in association with information regarding the time required for the care recipient to get out of bed from getting up.

(8) The information processing device described in any one of (1) to (7) above, wherein the first acquisition unit acquires the event information based on information from a first detection unit that detects the event of the care recipient.

(9) The information processing device described in (8) above, wherein the time of occurrence of the event is the time when the event is detected by the first detection unit or the time when the event is notified to the staff terminal used by the staff member.

(10) The information processing device described in any one of (1) to (9) above, wherein the second acquisition unit acquires the care information based on information from a second detection unit that detects the staff member's arrival at a predetermined location.

(11) An information processing system comprising the information processing device described in any one of (1) to (10) above, a first detection unit that detects the event of the care recipient, and a second detection unit that detects the staff member's arrival at a predetermined location.

(12) The information processing system described in (11) above, wherein the first detection unit includes at least one of a sensor that detects the event of the care recipient and a care call unit that allows the care recipient to notify the staff of the event.

(13) An information processing program for causing a computer to execute processing including the steps of: (a) acquiring event information including information regarding the time an event for a care recipient occurs; (b) acquiring care information including information regarding the time a staff member responding to the event for the care recipient arrives at a predetermined location; and (c) outputting information regarding the time required for the staff member to arrive based on the event information and the care information.

(12) A method for controlling an information processing system, comprising the steps of: (a) acquiring event information including information regarding the time an event for a care recipient occurs; (b) acquiring care information including information regarding the time a staff member responding to the event for the care recipient arrives at a predetermined location; and (c) outputting information regarding the time required for the staff member to arrive based on the event information and the care information.

According to the present invention, information is output regarding the time required for the care staff to arrive at a designated location from the time an event occurs for the care recipient. Therefore, it is possible to output information regarding the care staff's response status.

1 is a diagram illustrating an example of the overall configuration of a monitoring system according to an embodiment; FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram illustrating a detection unit installed around the bed in the care recipient's room. FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a schematic configuration of a detection unit shown in FIG. 1 . FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a schematic configuration of the management server shown in FIG. 1 . 2 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of the information manager terminal shown in FIG. 1; FIG. FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of the staff terminal shown in FIG. 1 . 5 is a functional block diagram illustrating the main functions of the control unit shown in FIG. 4. 8 is an example of event information and care information acquired by a first acquisition unit and a second acquisition unit shown in FIG. 7 . 8 is an example of information relating to a time required for emergency response output by the output unit shown in FIG. 7 . 8 is another example of information relating to the emergency response time output by the output unit shown in FIG. 7 . 8 is another example of information relating to the emergency response time output by the output unit shown in FIG. 7 . 8 is another example of information relating to the emergency response time output by the output unit shown in FIG. 7 . 1 is a flowchart illustrating a processing procedure of an information processing method according to an embodiment.

Embodiments of the present invention will now be described with reference to the drawings. Note that in the drawings, identical elements are given the same reference numerals, and duplicate explanations will be omitted. Also, the dimensional proportions in the drawings have been exaggerated for the sake of explanation, and may differ from the actual proportions.

Figure 1 is a diagram illustrating the overall configuration of a monitoring system 1 (information processing system) according to one embodiment, and Figure 2 is a schematic diagram illustrating a detection unit installed around the bed in the care recipient's room.

As shown in FIG. 1, the monitoring system 1 includes multiple detection units 10, a management server 20, an information manager terminal 30, and one or more staff terminals 40. These are communicatively connected to each other via a network 50, such as a LAN (Local Area Network), telephone network, or data communication network, either wired or wirelessly. The network 50 may include relay devices such as repeaters, bridges, routers, or cross-connects that relay communication signals. In the example shown in FIG. 1, the detection units 10, management server 20, information manager terminals 30, and staff terminals 40 are communicatively connected to each other via a network 50, such as a wireless LAN (e.g., a LAN conforming to the IEEE 802.11 standard) that includes an access point 51.

The monitoring system 1 is installed in an appropriate location depending on the care recipient 70. The care recipient 70 may be, for example, a patient who requires nursing due to illness or injury, a care recipient who requires care due to declining physical abilities due to aging, or a person living alone. In particular, from the perspective of enabling early detection and early response, the care recipient 70 may be someone who needs to be notified when a specific adverse event, such as an abnormal condition, occurs to them. For this reason, the monitoring system 1 is suitably installed in buildings such as hospitals, elderly care facilities, and residences depending on the type of care recipient 70. In the example shown in FIG. 1, the monitoring system 1 is installed in a facility with multiple rooms (living rooms) where multiple care recipients 70 live, and multiple rooms including a care station.

The detection unit 10 is placed in each room, which is the observation area of the care recipient 70. In the example shown in Figure 1, four detection units 10 are placed in each room of the care recipients 70, Mr. A, Mr. B, Mr. C, and Mr. D. As shown in Figure 2, the observation area of the detection unit 10 includes a bed 60. Care staff (staff) 80 who provide care, such as nursing or nursing care, to the care recipient 70 each carry a staff terminal 40, which is a mobile terminal. However, the location and number of each component of the monitoring system 1 are not limited to the example shown in Figure 1. For example, the management server 20 does not have to be placed in the care station, but may be an external server unit connected to the network 50.

Care also broadly includes care provided by the care staff 80 to the care recipient 70, including assistance with daily living such as meals, fluid intake, excretion, bathing, and cleaning, as well as vital signs checks (measuring body temperature, blood pressure, pulse rate, etc.).

(Detection unit 10)
3 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of the detection unit 10. As shown in the figure, the detection unit 10 includes a control unit 11, a communication unit 12, a camera 13, a care call unit 14, a voice input/output unit 15, and a pause switch 16, which are interconnected by a bus. Here, the detection unit 10 corresponds to a specific example of the first detection unit and the second detection unit of the present invention.

The control unit 11 is composed of a CPU (Central Processing Unit) and memories such as RAM (Random Access Memory) and ROM (Read Only Memory), and controls each part of the detection unit 10 and performs calculations according to a program. The control unit 11 may also include an HDD (Hard Disk Drive) or SSD (Solid State Drive) as memory.

The communication unit 12 is an interface circuit (e.g., a LAN card) for communicating with other devices, such as the management server 20, information manager terminal 30, or staff terminal 40, via the network 50.

Camera 13 is placed, for example, on the ceiling or upper part of a wall of the room, captures the bed 60 of the care recipient 70 directly below as the observation area, and outputs the captured image (image data). This captured image includes still images and videos. Camera 13 is a near-infrared camera, but a visible light camera may be used instead, or a combination of these may be used.

The control unit 11 recognizes the behavior of the care recipient 70 from the images captured by the camera 13. The recognized behaviors include "getting up" (standing up from the bed 60), "getting out of bed" (leaving the bed 60), "falling" (falling onto the floor, etc.), "falling" (falling off the bed 60 or wheelchair, etc.), and "leaving the room" (leaving the room, etc.).

The control unit 11 detects image silhouettes (hereinafter referred to as "human silhouettes") from multiple captured images (video images). Human silhouettes can be detected, for example, by extracting a range of pixels with relatively large differences using time subtraction, which subtracts images captured at different times. Human silhouettes may also be detected using background subtraction, which subtracts a background image from a captured image. Waking up, getting out of bed, and falling are recognized from the detected human silhouette based on the posture of the care recipient 70 (e.g., standing, sitting, lying down, etc.) and their position relative to objects in the room, such as the bed 60. These recognitions may be performed by a program processed by the CPU of the control unit 11, or by an embedded processing circuit.

In this embodiment, an event is a change in the condition of the care recipient 70 recognized by the detection unit 10, which should be reported (alert) to the care staff 80, such as getting up, getting out of bed, falling, slipping, leaving the room, and abnormal slight body movements. This event also includes a care call made by the care call unit 14. That is, the detection unit 10 may detect a care call made by the care recipient 70 as the movement of the care recipient 70 in the observation area. The detection unit 10 transmits information about the event that occurred to the management server 20.

Here, we will explain the response content for each event when the care staff 80's work is nursing care for the care recipient 70. The detection unit 10 determines that the event is "waking up," and if this determination is within a predetermined time (the wake-up time set by the facility (e.g., 7:00-8:00 AM)), the care staff 80 provides morning care to the care recipient 70. This morning care includes assistance with washing the face, brushing teeth, putting on dentures, and getting dressed. Furthermore, an event such as "getting out of bed" may require assistance with transferring to a wheelchair and walking. Furthermore, periodic (scheduled) events other than those determined by the detection unit 10 include assistance with drinking and eating, toileting assistance, transferring to a wheelchair, walking assistance, and changing position (to prevent bedsores). For these periodic events, the care call unit 14 or the like may generate an alert at the scheduled time.

The care call unit 14 includes a push-button switch, and detects a care call (nurse call) when the care recipient 70 presses the switch. Instead of a push-button switch, a care call may be detected using an audio microphone. When the switch of the care call unit 14 is pressed, i.e., when a care call is detected, the control unit 11 sends a notification that a care call has been made to the management server 20, etc., via the communication unit 12 and the network 50.

The audio input/output unit 15 is, for example, a speaker and microphone, and enables voice communication by sending and receiving audio signals to and from the information manager terminal 30 via the communication unit 12. The audio input/output unit 15 may be connected to the detection unit 10 via the communication unit 12 as an external device of the detection unit 10.

The pause switch 16 is located, for example, near the entrance to the room. This pause switch 16 includes, for example, a push button switch, and when the care staff member 80 or the like enters the room, the event determination by the detection unit 10 is temporarily stopped by operating this switch. The event determination by the detection unit 10 is resumed, for example, by operating the pause switch 16 again. The event determination by the detection unit 10 may be automatically resumed after a predetermined time has elapsed.

In place of or in addition to a push button switch, the pause switch 16 may be an NFC (near field communication) sensor such as FeliCa (registered trademark). For example, the pause switch 16 can be turned on/off by holding an IC card carried by the care staff member 80 over a reading terminal located at the entrance/exit of the room.

The detection unit 10 may also include a Doppler shift type body movement sensor that transmits and receives microwaves to and from the bed 60 and detects the Doppler shift of microwaves caused by body movement (e.g., breathing) of the care recipient 70. This body movement sensor detects chest movement (up and down movement of the chest) associated with the breathing of the care recipient 70, and recognizes abnormal micro-body movement when it detects a disruption in the period of the chest body movement or an amplitude of the chest body movement below a preset threshold. The detection unit 10 may also include a pressure sensor that detects pressure on the bed 60 to detect the movement of the care recipient 70, or an infrared sensor that detects the movement of the care recipient 70 using infrared rays. Alternatively, the detection unit 10 may have a Doppler shift type body movement sensor, pressure sensor, infrared sensor, etc. instead of the camera 13.

(Management Server 20)
4 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of the management server 20. The management server 20 has a control unit 21, a communication unit 22, and a database 23, and functions as an information processing device. The management server 20 may be provided in the same building as the room for the care recipient 70, or may be provided in a remote location and connectable via a network. For example, the management server 20 may be a cloud server virtually constructed by multiple servers located on a network such as the Internet. Each component is connected to each other via a bus so that they can communicate with each other.

Like the control unit 11 of the detection unit 10, the control unit 21 has a CPU, RAM, ROM, etc. The functions of the control unit 21 will be described later.

The communication unit 22 functions as a notification unit that notifies the information manager terminal 30 or the staff terminal 40 of events. The communication unit 22 also acquires status information from the detection unit 10, etc. This communication unit 22 is an interface for various local connections, such as a network interface for wired communication based on standards such as Ethernet (registered trademark), or an interface for wireless communication based on standards such as Bluetooth (registered trademark) and IEEE 802.11, and communicates with each terminal connected to the network 50.

The database 23 functions as a storage unit and stores an event list, information about the care recipient 70, information about the care staff 80, care records, etc.

The event list includes information about various events, including specific events that may lead to an accident for the care recipient 70 (e.g., falls or tripping). Information about the care recipient 70 includes, for example, the care recipient's 70 name, date of birth, ID number, room number, usual meal amount, amount of fluid intake outside of meals, medical history, level of care required, current hospital visit status, etc. Information about the care staff 80 includes, for example, the care staff's 80 name, staff ID, date of birth, years of service (career years), care skill level, etc.

A care record is a document that records information about care provided to a care recipient 70 at a facility. For example, based on a care plan prepared for each care recipient 70, the care staff 80 provide various types of assistance with daily living such as meals, fluid intake, excretion, bathing, and cleaning, as well as vital signs checks (measuring body temperature, blood pressure, pulse, etc.) to the care recipient 70. The care provided by the care staff 80 to the care recipient 70, such as assistance and vital signs checks, as well as the behavior and state of the care recipient 70, are recorded in the care record. The care record is updated when the care staff 80 inputs information about the care provided to the care recipient 70. The care record is input, for example, via the input unit 44 of the staff terminal 40.

The management server 20, either independently or in cooperation with the detection unit 10, determines (identifies) which care recipient 70 an event detected by the detection unit 10, such as getting up, getting out of bed, falling, or calling for care, relates to. This determination is made by determining the care recipient 70 (i.e., the occupant of the room) associated with the room number of the detection unit 10 that detected the event. The determined type of event is then associated with the care recipient 70 and added to the event list in the database 23. Note that in this embodiment, if the care recipient 70 carries an IC tag, the care recipient 70 may be determined by reading the IC tag with an RFID reader installed in each room. Note that if there are multiple care recipients 70 in one room, such as in a shared room, the care recipient 70 may be determined by placing a detection unit 10 on each bed 60.

(Information manager terminal 30)
5 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of the information manager terminal 30. The information manager terminal 30 is a so-called PC (Personal Computer) and includes a control unit 31, a communication unit 32, a display unit 33, an input unit 34, and an audio input/output unit 35, which are interconnected by a bus. The control unit 31 has a configuration similar to that of the control unit 11 of the detection unit 10, including a CPU, RAM, ROM, etc.

The communication unit 32 is an interface for various local connections, such as a network interface for wired communication based on standards such as Ethernet (registered trademark), or an interface for wireless communication based on standards such as Bluetooth (registered trademark) or IEEE 802.11, and communicates with each terminal connected to the network 50.

The display unit 33 is, for example, a liquid crystal display, and displays various information. For example, the display unit 33 displays an image captured by the detection unit 10.

The input unit 34 is equipped with a keyboard, numeric keypad, mouse, etc., and is used to input various information.

The audio input/output unit 35 is, for example, a headset equipped with a speaker and microphone.

The information manager terminal 30 is used, for example, as a terminal for the information manager 90, and displays various information about the facility to the information manager 90 and accepts instructions. It also enables voice calls with care staff 80, etc., by sending and receiving voice signals between the detection unit 10 or the staff terminal 40 via the communication unit 32. Here, the information manager 90 is a manager who oversees multiple care staff 80. The information manager 90 may oversee not only care staff 80 working at one facility, but also care staff 80 working at multiple facilities.

In addition, when the detection unit 10 is installed in each room (residential room), the care staff 80 or technical staff, etc., use the information manager terminal 30 to associate the room number with the detection unit 10, and calibrate and specify the position information of objects installed in the room, such as the bed 60, i.e., the contour information of the upward view taken by the ceiling camera 13. They also associate the identification information, such as the name and ID number, of the care recipient 70 who is hospitalized or residing with each room number.

(Staff terminal 40)
6 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of the staff terminal 40. The staff terminal 40 includes a control unit 41, a wireless communication unit 42, a display unit 43, an input unit 44, and a voice input/output unit 45, which are interconnected by a bus.

The control unit 41 has a similar configuration to the control unit 11 of the detection unit 10, including a CPU, RAM, ROM, etc.

The wireless communication unit 42 enables wireless communication using standards such as Wi-Fi and Bluetooth (registered trademark), and communicates wirelessly with each device either via the access point 51 or directly.

The display unit 43 and input unit 44 are touch panels, with a touch sensor serving as the input unit 44 superimposed on the display surface of the display unit 43, which is composed of a liquid crystal display or the like. The display unit 43 and input unit 44 display various operation screens for the care staff 80, displaying a list of multiple events included in the event list, and accept various operations via the operation screens. The display unit 43 also displays the behavior and notification content of the care recipient 70 notified by the communication unit 22 of the management server 20. When the detection unit 10 detects an event of the care recipient 70, event information related to this event is notified to the staff terminal 40 via the management server 20. The event information may be notified to the staff terminals 40 of all care staff 80, or may be notified to the staff terminals 40 of care staff 80 belonging to a specific group. Furthermore, when the care staff 80 provides care to the care recipient 70, they input information related to the care provided to the care recipient 70 into the care record via the input unit 44.

The audio input/output unit 45 is, for example, a speaker and microphone, and enables the care staff 80 to make voice calls to other staff terminals 40 via the wireless communication unit 42. The staff terminal 40 is a device that functions as a user interface for the monitoring system 1, and can be configured as a portable communication terminal device such as a tablet computer, smartphone, or mobile phone.

When starting work, the care staff member 80 performs login authentication processing via the assigned staff terminal 40. The care staff member 80 enters their staff ID and password via the touch panel (display unit 43, input unit 44) of the staff terminal 40 and sends them to the management server 20. The management server 20 compares the authentication information stored in the database 23 and sends the authentication result corresponding to the care staff member's 80 authority to the staff terminal 40, thereby completing the login authentication.

The staff terminal 40 also has the function of identifying the location of the staff terminal 40 using GPS (Global Positioning System), Bluetooth, etc. This allows the management server 20 to identify the location of the care staff member 80 carrying the staff terminal 40.

Note that the detection unit 10, management server 20, information manager terminal 30, and staff terminal 40 may include components other than those described above, or may not include some of the components described above.

(Functions of the control unit 21)
Here, the functions of the control unit 21 of the management server 20 will be described.

Figure 7 is a block diagram showing an example of the functions of the control unit 21. For example, the control unit 21 functions as a first acquisition unit 211, a second acquisition unit 212, a calculation unit 213, and an output unit 214 when the CPU executes an information processing program.

The first acquisition unit 211 acquires event information including information regarding the time an event occurred for the care recipient 70. The event occurrence time may be, for example, the time an event related to the care recipient 70 was detected by the detection unit 10, the time information related to the event was notified from the management server 20 to the staff terminal 40, the time instructions for responding to the care recipient 70 were notified to the staff terminal 40, or the time a predetermined input was made from the staff terminal 40. The time a predetermined input was made from the staff terminal 40 may be the time of the input, or the time when the care staff member 80 who received the notification inputs information indicating that they will respond to the event (the time when they input information such as "I will take charge," "I will respond," "I will confirm," etc.). From the perspective of identifying areas for improvement to provide more appropriate care, it is preferable that the time of the event occurrence be the time when they input information indicating that they will respond to the event (the time when they input information such as "I will take charge," "I will respond," "I will confirm," etc.). The first acquisition unit 211 acquires the event information from the detection unit 10, for example, via the communication unit 22. The first acquisition unit 211 may acquire event information for all events or for a specific event.

The second acquisition unit 212 acquires care information including information regarding the arrival time at which the care staff 80 corresponding to each event will travel based on the occurrence of the event and arrive at a predetermined location. The arrival time at the predetermined location may be the arrival time (arrival time) of the care staff 80 at the predetermined location, or the time at which the care staff 80 is at the predetermined location.

The specified point may be, for example, the room of the care recipient 70, or a point where the care recipient 70 is a specified distance from the care staff 80. The arrival time may be, for example, the time the care staff 80 enters the room, or the time when the care recipient 70 and the care staff 80 are within a specified distance. It is preferable that the information regarding the arrival time at the specified point be information obtained based on an image, from the perspective of identifying areas for improvement to provide more appropriate care.

The control unit 21 determines that the care staff 80 has entered the room of the care recipient 70, for example, when the detection unit 10 detects that there are multiple people in the room of the care recipient 70. The presence of multiple people in the room is detected, for example, based on images from the camera 13 of the detection unit 10. The control unit 21 may determine that the care staff 80 has entered the room of the care recipient 70 when the pause switch 16 of the detection unit 10 is operated. In other words, the arrival time may be the time when the presence of multiple people in the room is detected based on images from the camera 13 of the detection unit 10, or the time when the pause switch 16 is operated. Alternatively, the arrival time may be the time when a sensor or the like detects that the care recipient 70 and the care staff 80 are within a predetermined distance. The second acquisition unit 212 acquires the care information from the detection unit 10, for example.

Figure 8 shows an example of event information acquired by the first acquisition unit 211 and care information acquired by the second acquisition unit 212. For example, the event information and care information shown in Figure 8 indicate that care recipient A in room 201 woke up at 10:30:24 on May 1st (the time the event occurred), and that care staff member X entered room 201 in response to this at 10:30:55 on May 1st (the time care staff member 80 arrived). It also indicates that a care call from care recipient C in room 203 was detected or notified at 11:20:00 on May 1st (the time the event occurred), and that care staff member Y entered room 203 in response to this at 11:21:34 on May 1st (the time care staff member 80 arrived).

The calculation unit 213 calculates the time required for the care staff 80 to arrive at a predetermined location from the time the event occurs to the time the care staff 80 arrives at the predetermined location, based on the event information acquired by the first acquisition unit 211 and the care information acquired by the second acquisition unit 212. The time required for the care staff 80 to arrive is, for example, the time from the time the event occurs to the time the care staff 80 enters the room of the care recipient 70 to respond to the event. For example, when the first acquisition unit 211 and the second acquisition unit 212 acquire the event information and care information shown in FIG. 8, the calculation unit 213 calculates that the time required for care staff X to arrive at care recipient A is 31 seconds, and the time required for care staff Y to arrive at care recipient C is 94 seconds.

The output unit 214 outputs, for example, information regarding the time required for the care staff 80 to arrive, calculated by the calculation unit 213.

Figures 9 and 10 show examples of information output by the output unit 214. The output unit 214 outputs, for example, the average time required for emergency response over a predetermined period for each combination of each care staff member 80 and each care recipient 70. The output unit 214 may output information regarding the time required for emergency response in table format (Figure 9), or may output information regarding the time required for emergency response in the form of a graph such as a bar graph (Figure 10). The output unit 214 may output information regarding the time required for emergency response for each care staff member 80 (Figure 10). From this information regarding the time required for emergency response of each care staff member 80, the facility can determine, for example, that the time required for emergency response of a particular care staff member 80 (care staff member Z) is longer than that of other care staff members 80.

Figure 11 shows another example of information output by the output unit 214. The output unit 214 may output information related to the time required for emergency response in association with information related to the time required for the care recipient 70 to get out of bed, which is the time required from waking up to getting out of bed. In Figure 11, the time required for the care staff 80 to get to the care recipient 70 and the time required for the care recipient 70 to get out of bed are shown in a box-and-whisker plot for each care recipient 70. From the information output in this way, the facility can confirm, for example, that for care recipient D, the time required for emergency response tends to be longer than the time required for getting out of bed. This allows the facility manager, for example, to understand the risk of D falling if care is not provided in time when getting out of bed.

The output unit 214 may output information analyzed by the control unit 21 based on the event information acquired by the first acquisition unit 211 and the care information acquired by the second acquisition unit 212.

FIG. 12 shows an example of information output by the output unit 214. FIG. 12 shows the number of times and the percentage of times the care staff 80 entered the care recipient 70's room before the care recipient 70 got out of bed. The percentage (%) is calculated by dividing the number of times the care staff 80 entered the room before the care recipient 70 got out of bed by the sum of the number of times the care staff 80 entered the room before the care recipient 70 got out of bed and the number of times the care staff 80 entered the room after the care recipient 70 got out of bed. The control unit 21, for example, compares information related to the time the care recipient 70 got out of bed acquired by the first acquisition unit 211 with information related to the time the care staff 80 entered the room acquired by the second acquisition unit 212 to determine whether the care staff 80 entered the care recipient 70's room before the care recipient 70 got out of bed. The control unit 21 may determine whether the care staff 80 entered the care recipient 70's room before the care recipient 70 got out of bed based on a comparison between the time required for the care staff 80 to arrive and the time required for the care recipient 70 to get out of bed. From this information, the facility can determine, for example, that the rate at which care staff 80 enter the room before care recipient B leaves bed is low.

(Information processing method)
Next, an overview of the processing procedure of the information processing method of this embodiment will be described with reference to Fig. 13. Fig. 13 is a flowchart illustrating the processing procedure of the control method of this embodiment. The processing of the flowchart in Fig. 13 is realized, for example, by the CPU of the control unit 21 executing an information processing program.

The control unit 21 first acquires event information for each care recipient 70 (step S101). The control unit 21 acquires the event information, for example, from the detection unit 10. This event information includes information about the time an event occurred for the care recipient 70. The acquired event information is stored, for example, in the RAM of the control unit 21.

Next, the control unit 21 acquires care information (step S102). The control unit 21 acquires the care information from, for example, the detection unit 10. This care information includes information regarding the arrival time (e.g., the entry time into the care recipient's 70's room) when the care staff 80 corresponding to the event for each care recipient 70 moves based on the occurrence of the event and arrives at a predetermined location. The acquired care information is stored, for example, in the RAM of the control unit 21. Steps S101 and S102 may be performed in the reverse order, or simultaneously.

Next, the control unit 21 calculates the time required for the care staff 80 to arrive based on the event information acquired in step S101 and the care information acquired in step S102 (step S103). The time required for arrival is the time from the time an event occurs for the care recipient 70 to the time the care staff 80 arrives. For example, the control unit 21 calculates the time required from the time the care recipient 70's awakening is detected or notified to the time the care staff 80 enters the care recipient 70's room to provide morning care. Information related to the calculated time required is stored, for example, in the RAM of the control unit 21.

After calculating the required response time, the control unit 21 outputs information regarding the required response time (step S104) and ends the processing.

(Effects of the monitoring system)
The monitoring system 1 (management server 20) of this embodiment outputs information regarding the time required for the care staff 80 to respond to an event, from the time an event occurs for the care recipient 70 to the time the care staff 80 responds to the event arrives at a predetermined location. That is, information regarding the response status of the care staff 80 is output. This allows the facility to easily grasp the response status of the care staff 80, making it possible to develop effective improvement measures for providing more appropriate care.

For example, if the monitoring system does not calculate the time required to respond, it is difficult for facility managers and others to efficiently understand the response status of each care staff member. Even if managers and others notice that the time it takes care staff to respond to an event varies, it is difficult to come up with effective improvement measures based on subjective judgment.

In contrast, the monitoring system 1 outputs information regarding the time required for each care staff member 80 to respond to the emergency. This allows facility managers and others to easily grasp the status of each care staff member 80's care response to the care recipient 70, making it easier to identify, for example, care staff members 80 who require improvement in their response to the care recipient 70. Facility managers and others can also extract conditions such as time periods or care recipient 70 (rooms) that tend to require longer response times. This makes it possible to develop effective improvement measures to provide more appropriate care.

The monitoring system 1 can also output the time required for the care staff 80 to arrive and the time required for the care recipient 70 to get out of bed in association with each other. This makes it easier for facility managers and others to extract conditions, such as the care recipient 70 (room) and time of day, that pose a high risk of falling when getting out of bed, enabling them to develop effective measures to prevent falls.

As described above, the monitoring system 1 (management server 20) of this embodiment outputs information regarding the time required for the care staff 80 to respond to an event, from the time the event occurred for the care recipient 70, to the time the care staff 80 responding to the event arrives at a specified location. Therefore, information regarding the response status of the care staff 80 can be output.

The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various modifications are possible within the scope of the claims.

For example, in the above embodiment, an example was described in which the care information included information regarding the time when the care staff 80 entered the room of the care recipient 70. However, instead of or in addition to this, the care information may also include information regarding other times. For example, the care information may include information regarding the time when the care staff 80 reaches a predetermined distance around the room of the care recipient 70, or may include information regarding the time when the care staff 80 enters or reaches the vicinity of a room other than the room (e.g., a diaper storage room) to provide care to the care recipient 70.

In addition, in the above embodiment, an example was described in which the management server 20 outputs information related to the time required for the care recipient 70 to get out of bed in association with information related to the time required for the care staff 80 to arrive. However, the management server 20 may output information related to the time required for the care recipient 70 to get out of bed in association with other information. For example, the management server 20 may output information related to the time required for the care recipient 70 to get out of bed in association with information related to the time required for the care recipient 70 to leave the room. This makes it possible to devise improvement measures to prevent falls or wandering that may result from leaving the room.

In addition, in the above embodiment, the management server 20 functions as an information processing device, but the present invention is not limited to this, and the information manager terminal 30 may be configured to function as an information processing device. In addition, the detection unit 10 may be configured to function as an information processing device by having the CPU of the control unit 11 of the detection unit 10 execute an information processing program.

Furthermore, the processing units in the flowcharts in the above embodiments are divided according to the main processing content to make each process easier to understand. The method of classifying the processing steps does not limit the scope of the present invention. Each process can also be divided into more processing steps. Furthermore, one processing step may execute even more processes.

The information processing program may be provided by a computer-readable recording medium such as a USB memory stick, flexible disk, or CD-ROM, or may be provided online via a network such as the Internet. In this case, the program recorded on the computer-readable recording medium is typically transferred and stored in memory or storage. The information processing program may also be provided, for example, as standalone application software, or may be incorporated into the software of each device as a function of the server.

In addition, in the embodiments, some or all of the processing performed by the program may be replaced with hardware such as circuits.

1. Monitoring system,
10 detection unit,
11 control unit,
12. Communications Department,
13. Camera,
14. Care Call Department,
15 audio input unit,
16 pause switch,
20 management server,
21 control unit,
211 First acquisition part,
212 Second acquisition part,
213 calculation unit,
214 output unit,
22 Communications Department,
23 databases,
30 information manager terminal,
40 staff terminals,
41 control unit,
42 wireless communication unit,
43 Display section,
44 input unit,
45 audio input/output unit,
50 networks,
51 access points,
60 beds,
70. Subjects of care,
80 care staff.

Claims (10)

a first acquisition unit that acquires event information including information about an occurrence time of an event of the care recipient;
a second acquisition unit that acquires care information including information about an arrival time when a staff member who is assigned to the event of the care recipient will arrive at a predetermined location;
a calculation unit that calculates a time required for the staff to arrive from the occurrence time to the arrival time based on the event information and the care information;
an information processing device including an output unit that outputs information related to the emergency response time ;
a first detection unit that detects the event of the care recipient;
a second detection unit that detects the arrival of the staff member at a predetermined point;
Equipped with
An information processing system , wherein the time of occurrence of the event includes the time of input indicating that a response to the event will be taken. a first acquisition unit that acquires event information including information about an occurrence time of an event of the care recipient;
a second acquisition unit that acquires care information including information about an arrival time when a staff member who is assigned to the event of the care recipient will arrive at a predetermined location;
a calculation unit that calculates a time required for the staff to arrive from the occurrence time to the arrival time based on the event information and the care information;
an information processing device including an output unit that outputs information related to the emergency response time ;
a first detection unit that detects the event of the care recipient;
a second detection unit that detects the arrival of the staff member at a predetermined point;
Equipped with
the events include waking and getting out of bed;
The output unit outputs information regarding the time required for emergency response in association with information regarding the time required for the care recipient to get out of bed from the time the care recipient wakes up. The information processing system according to claim 1 , wherein the information regarding the arrival time at the predetermined point includes information acquired based on an image. 4. The information processing system according to claim 1, wherein the arrival time is the time when the staff member enters the room of the care recipient. The information processing system according to claim 1 , wherein the events include at least one of the care recipient getting up, getting out of bed, falling, dropping, and leaving a room. 6. The information processing system according to claim 1, wherein the output unit outputs information relating to the time required for emergency response for each staff member or each care recipient. 7. The information processing system according to claim 1, wherein the first acquisition unit acquires the event information based on information from the first detection unit. 8. The information processing system according to claim 7, wherein the occurrence time of the event is the time when the event is detected by the first detection unit or the time when the event is notified to a staff terminal used by the staff member. 9. The information processing system according to claim 1 , wherein the second acquisition unit acquires the care information based on information from the second detection unit. The information processing system according to any one of claims 1 to 9 , wherein the first detection unit includes at least one of a sensor that detects the event of the care recipient and a care call unit that allows the care recipient to notify the staff of the event.