Patent ID: 6970737

Claim:
An apparatus comprising: a lead wire assembly, each lead wire having a transducer capable of receiving an ECG signal from a patient; a portable ECG device including: a portable, ECG monitor adapted to be connected to the lead wire assembly, the ECG monitor having a data link port and a processor to process the ECG signals from the lead wire assembly and produce standard 12-lead ECG data representative of cardiac condition of the patient; and a wireless communication interface integrated with the ECG monitor to receive patient ECG data from the ECG monitor and transmit patient ECO data to a remote health care provider; an information management system connectable to the data link port of the ECG monitor to maintain ECO monitoring during patient transport to a health care facility, the information management system having data storage to maintain an ECG history that is downloadable at the health care facility; and wherein the processor of the portable ECG device is programmed to prompt the patient if assistance is needed to acquire an ECG, and if so, open a data transmission link to the health care provider otherwise, receive and process the ECG signals, then open a data transmission link and transmit the ECG data to the health care provider.