Patent ID: 7467094

Claim:
An accounting and billing system for patients in a hospital environment comprising: a telecommunication network; monitoring stations comprising monitoring equipment, wherein the monitoring equipment comprises instructions for monitoring data elements from geographically dispersed hospitalized patients and sending the monitored data elements to a remote command center via the telecommunications network, wherein the remote command center comprises instructions for: receiving the monitored data elements from the geographically dispersed hospitalized patients; accessing patient data elements indicative of a medical condition associated with each of the geographically dispersed hospitalized patients; establishing patient-specific rules associated with each of the geographically dispersed hospitalized patients; and applying the patient-specific rules continuously and simultaneously using a rules engine, wherein the rules engine comprises instructions for: selecting data elements from the monitored data elements and the patient data elements associated with a hospitalized patient; applying a patient-specific rule associated with the hospitalized patient to the selected data elements; determining in an automated fashion at the remote command center 24 hours per day 7 days per week whether the patient-specific rule for the hospitalized patient has been contravened; and in the event the patient-specific rule for the hospitalized patient has been contravened, determining in an automated fashion whether intervention is warranted; a decision support module comprising instructions for, in the event the patient-specific rule for the hospitalized patient has been contravened: accessing a decision support algorithm; applying the decision support algorithm to the selected patient data elements of the hospitalized patient; and providing patient care guidance formulated to return the medical condition of the patient to compliance with the patient specific rule, whereby the treatment of hospitalized patients is standardized; and a bill generator, wherein the bill generator comprises instructions for: receiving a patient ID associated with the hospitalized patient; receiving a current procedural terminology (CPT) code from a CPT code assignment manager for a billable service provided to the hospitalized patient associated with the patient ID, wherein the billable service is selected from a monitoring service and a patient care service; and assembling a bill for the billable service provided to the hospitalized patient associated with the patient ID using the CPT codes.