Patent ID: 8140160

Claim:
A method for using an interactive medical device system to monitor and treat a patient, the interactive implantable device system including a first external interactive computing device and at least one second external interactive computing device, the first external interactive computing device and the at least one second external interactive computing device configured to be in operable communication with each other over a communications network, the first external interactive computing device being configured to receive a patient command from a patient, the method comprising: initiating, in the first external interactive computing device, one or more actions associated with a patient command received by the first external interactive computing device; determining, in the first external interactive computing device, which of, if any, the one or more actions initiated by the first external interactive computing device can be performed by the first external interactive computing device based on first allowability rules related to the one or more actions and the patient command; performing, in the first external interactive computing device, the determined one or more actions that can be performed by the first external interactive computing device, if any; communicating to the at least one second external interactive computing device which actions, if any, the first external interactive computing device cannot perform; and determining, in the at least one second external interactive computing device, which of, if any, the one or more actions initiated in and determined by the first external interactive computing device cannot be performed by the first external interactive computing device can be performed by the first external interactive computing device based on the first allowability rules, can be performed by the at least one second external interactive computing device, and are not to be performed by the first external interactive computing device and the at least one second external interactive computing device based on second allowability rules related to the one or more actions and the patient command.