Patent ID: 7904312
Filing Date: 2011-03-08
Classification: G06F,G16H

Abstract:
1. A healthcare communication system comprising: a patient terminal comprising a keyboard unit having message keys for generating different ones of a plurality of programmed messages and alphanumeric keys for composing messages, wherein said patient terminal is communicatively linked to a patient terminal display for presenting said plurality of programmed messages and composed messages, each said message key having a surface portion and unique identifying indicia disposed on the surface portion and corresponding to a particular programmed patient message that is transmitted over the communication system after a patient selects said message key; a memory communicatively linked to the patient terminal for storing the programmed messages, wherein the plurality of programmed messages include at least one patient-specific message composed by a patient or other person using the keyboard unit, wherein the at least one patient-specific message is associated with one of the message keys, defining an activation key, to enable the patient to send the message by pressing the activation key, and wherein the at least one patient-specific message can be sent by the patient to a patient-directed destination; a nurse station remotely located from and communicatively linked to the patient terminal for receiving assistance messages from the patient, wherein the system dates and time-stamps each assistance message for performing quality control monitoring; and a nutrition station configured to transmit messages specifying at least one food item choice to said patient terminal for presentation upon said patient terminal display and to receive messages from said patient terminal specifying selected ones of said food item choices indicating food items to be prepared and delivered.