Patent ID: 8043213

Claim:
A method for use in managing a patient's health within a patient management system, comprising: accessing a number of predetermined events related to the patient's health identified by the patient management system, wherein the patient management system includes an Implantable Medical Device (IMD) adapted to acquire at least one health-related parameter, wherein the IMD is configured to be implanted in an ambulatory patient, wherein the patient management system further includes at least one external device configured to communicate with the IMD when the patient is away from a clinical setting, and wherein the patient management system is adapted to use the at least one health-related parameter acquired by the IMD to identify at least one of the number of predetermined events; and classifying each of the number of predetermined events according to severity using a color-code system, wherein classifying each of the number of predetermined events according to severity includes classifying each of the number of predetermined events as imminently life threatening, or as serious but not imminently life threatening, or as neither imminently life threatening nor serious, wherein classifying is performed in the IMD or the portable external device and wherein classifying includes: identifying events that are imminently life threatening as red events, and automatically initiating a first communication to inform the patient and a second communication to inform a physician of each of the red events, wherein the red events include at least one of: a lead with an impedance that is out of bounds; a situation where a therapy provided by the IMD has been exhausted, an end-of life indicator reflecting a diminishing amount of power remaining for the IMD that is approaching a threshold where therapy will cease; and a failure of the IMD that prevents delivery of life sustaining therapy; identifying events that are serious but not imminently life threatening as yellow events, and automatically initiating a process to inform the patient or a physician of each of the yellow events, wherein the yellow events include at least one of: an elective-replacement indicator for a battery of the IMD; an atrial lead with an impedance that is out-of bounds; a detected first instance of a predetermined arrhythmia; an arrhythmia treatment; a failure of the IMD that will not prevent delivery of life sustaining therapy; or a time in atrial fibrillation; and identifying events that are neither imminently life threatening nor serious as green events and not automatically initiating communication to inform at least one of the patient and a physician of the green event.