Medical Monitor Interface

Monitor

Overview

The Universal Medical Monitor System (UMM) provides a single high-level language interface to medical monitors.

Medical monitors are used extensively in health care systems. They are typically used in the operating room, emergency room, intensive care, as well as other parts of a hospital. They measure on-going aspects of a patient's condition such as vital signs (heart rate, blood pressure, etc.) in additional to specialized measures such as pulse oxidation and brain waves. Existing interfaces to these devices are typically very low level and unique to each device, thereby making the generalized use of the device difficult.

The UMM project provides a high level software interface to these devices. This system includes the following features:

  1. A database into which monitor data is stored and from which monitor data is retrieved, at both disclosure and QA resolution.
  2. Device interfaces for serial and networked devices.
  3. XML configuration files for each device, so the low lever interface protocols can be specified, thereby allowing new devices to be easily added to the system.
  4. A user interface that allows selection and control of the device (e.g., sampling interval)from among all the devices visible over the interfaces.
  5. Coordination of multiple devices so data from multiple devices can be collected at the same time points.
  6. A simple Java API that allows for the extraction of medical data.
  7. Simulators for each of the monitors, so that software using the monitors can be tested independent of the availability of the actual device.
Current Students
Thomas Condus

The system currently supports five monitors covering serial and network devices, a variety of data, and active (e.g., drug administration) as well as passive devices (data sampling). The system has been used in the operating room of Stony Brook hospital to capture data associated with actual medical cases.

Current Research

We are extending the XML schema for configuration data to allow for the easy addition of new monitors.

Collaboration

The system is being developed in collaboration with the Stony Brook Health Science Center (MSRC) and Dr. Alvin Bicker and has been supported with grants from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.