Patent ID: 8209014

Claim:
A medical therapy method for use with a medical therapy system including: a. a central service center ( 14 ), b. a programming device ( 12 ) separate and spaced from the central service center ( 14 ); and c. a patient medical implant ( 10 ) separate and spaced from the central service center ( 14 ) and the programming device ( 12 ), the patient medical implant ( 10 ) having: (1) at least one interface ( 30 , 32 ) configured to perform: (a) a wireless data exchange with the programming device ( 12 ) over a first data communication channel, and (b) a wireless data exchange with the central service center ( 14 ) over a second data communication channel, and (2) a data memory ( 36 ), the method including the steps of: A. transmitting a center data packet from the central service center ( 14 ) over the second data communication channel, wherein the center data packet includes: I. messages and/or commands intended for the programming device ( 12 ); II. operational commands relating to one or more of: (A) the patient medical implant ( 10 ), and (B) a second medical implant ( 10 . 3 ), the second medical implant ( 10 . 3 ) being different from the patient medical implant ( 10 . 2 ), and wherein the patient medical implant ( 10 ) and the second medical implant ( 10 . 3 ) are in different patients; B. receiving and storing the center data packet in the patient medical implant ( 10 ), C. subsequently relaying at least a portion of the center data packet from the patient medical implant ( 10 ) to the programming device ( 12 ) via the first data communication channel, D. transmitting any operational commands relating to the patient medical implant ( 10 ) from the programming device ( 12 ) to the patient medical implant ( 10 ), and E. transmitting any operational commands relating to the second medical implant ( 10 . 3 ) from the programming device ( 12 ) to the second medical implant ( 10 . 3 ).