Patent ID: 7294105

Claim:
A communication system, comprising: a plurality of transmitters adapted to be coupled to at least one patient at a first location, the plurality of transmitters communicating over a first communication link a plurality of data signals associated with the at least one patient, at least a portion of the first communication link comprising a wireless connection; a first receiver coupled to the first communication link, the first receiver receiving at least a portion of the plurality of data signals communicated over the first communication link and communicating the portion of the plurality of data signals over a second communication link, wherein the first receiver communicates the portion of the plurality of data signals in a first data format over the second communication link, wherein the first data format comprises a time division multiple-access (TDMA) format and wherein at least a portion of the second communication link comprises an optical fiber; at least one repeater coupled to the first receiver, the at least one repeater boosting a power level of the portion of the plurality of data signals for communication over the second communication link; and a central office station coupled to the at least one repeater, the central office station receiving the portion of the plurality of data signals communicated over the second communication link and communicating at least some of the portion of the plurality of data signals received by the central office station in a second data format over a third communication link to one or more receiving devices at a remote location, wherein the remote location is different than the first location and wherein the third communication link comprises a local access network coupled to the central office station at a proximal end of the local access network and coupled to the remote location at a distal end of the local access network; and one or more diagnostic devices coupled to the central office station, wherein the one or more diagnostic devices comprise a device selected from the group consisting of a heart monitor, an electrocardiogram, a blood pressure device, a temperature measuring device, a chemical composition device, and an electroencephalogram, wherein the second data format of at least a portion of the plurality of data signals communicated over the third communication link comprises a different format than the first data format communicated over the second communication link.