Point-of-Treatment: Touchable E-nursing User Interface for Medical Emergencies

Abstract

A common occurrence in any nursing home for the elderly is a medical emergency such as a cardiac arrest, a fall or a diabetic seizure. Our goal was to provide an effective and supportive graphical user interface for nursing personnel and care-givers who are first responders to such an emergency situation. A prototype called Portable Medical Monitoring Computer (PMMC) was developed to provide a possible solution to the growing demand for effective, appropriate and efficient elderly care, especially in emergency situations. It is classified as a touchable Medical e-Nursing Information System to support registered nurses in nursing homes with vital sign parameters and other medical information about residents who are suffering a medical emergency. The application was designed around the concept of a portable computer with a touch screen, which allows users to access information next to the casualty at the point-of-treatment. The main goal of this project was to design a usable interface for this emergency deployment scenario. This front-end application receives a variety of information, including vital sign information from the existing wireless sensor network called ReMoteCare. This application prototype has the potential to significantly help serve the future needs of caregivers during an emergency situation through its easy to use, straight forward interface that allows quick and accurate access to vital sign and medical data. The paper reports on the advantages and improvements related to the mobile touch screen GUI.