Patient Safety

The research is to use and develop human performance and ergonomic principles in improving patient safety. Research projects include studies of patient monitor alarms, video analysis of team performance during emergency airway management, remote mentoring of airway management in civilian and military context, improving sterile practices during invasive procedures by video-based on-line training courses, design of anesthesia workstations through analysis of clinician's eye-gazes, and design of instrument tray through video analysis. The group has pioneered video analysis tools and methods for studying patient safety in actual work settings. Additional projects are listed below:

•   Wrist worn heart monitor (Northrop Grumman)  
•   Video procedural guides (NASA)
•   Developmental Center for Evaluation and Research in Patient Safety   (Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality)
•   Auditory Alarms in Critical Care Settings (Multiple funding sources)
•   Brief risky high benefit procedures: best practice model (Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality)
•   Improving communication in cardiac surgery (US Army)
•   Patient safety and process improvement using human factors engineering (UMMS)
•   Video based procedure guide (NASA / NSBRI)
•   Design of anesthesia workspace (GE/Datex-Ohmeda)
•   Leadership and team development (US Army)
•   Distributed training (Aptima)
•   On-line Training for Patient Safety

Coordination

The research is driven by the goal of understanding potential roles of information technology in facilitating coordination of care activities. Research projects include national survey of levels I and II trauma centers on the use of communication technology, acquisition of video and patient flow data automatically to support operating room management, development of advanced interfaces to facilitate coordination, and development of algorithms to visualize data for OR management. Additional projects are listed below:

•   Supporting Rapid Transfer of Information and Responsibility (National Science Foundation)
•   Large Scale Collaboration (National Science Foundation)
•   Expertise Coordination and Information Technology (National Science Foundation)
•   Video based coordination in Operating Room of the Future (US Army)

Information Technology

The research is driven by the overall goal of developing new technology to facilitate data rich information transfers. Research projects include mobile telemedicine applications for rapid assessment of stroke patients en route to hospitals, high speed video conferencing networks for specialty stroke care at rural hospitals, field data collection of patient vital signs and images for trauma and mass casualty care, and intra-hospital communication systems using video-audio-vital sign data. The systems developed were featured in news broadcast by public and commercial television stations. Additional projects are listed below:

•   OR of the Future (DoD) 
•   Automated Robotic Medication Delivery (UMMC)
•   Mobile computing in clinical care (National Science Foundation)
•   The mobile digitally connected doctors (MobiDoc) project (Nortel Networks)
•   Mobile telemedicine applications for stroke (Northrop Grumman)
•   Integrated video-audio data acquisition ( VASNET )
•   Environment for Video Analysis ( VINA )
•   A state-of-the-art telecommunication testbed ( Telecontrol Center ) was established in the Shock Trauma Center for research.

Real-Time Clinical Informatics

We have accumulated strong expertise is comprehensive clinical data collection, such as
vital sign data recording (VSDR) system for real-time automatic patient data collection from
pre-hospital (Ambulances, Helicopters) to the bed side (Resuscitation, OR, PACU and ICU’s).

We have developed innovative applications to exploit the real-time data for difference purposes. We developed sophisticated signal processing methods to integrate real-time clinical sensor information (VS, Video, Alarm) for enhance real-time operation and research. One example is based on the live OR patient vital signs, automatic mapping it to the patient In / Out status for OR management. The following are our key expertise areas.

	Pre and In Hospital Real-Time Patient Vital Signs and Events Data Collection Systems.
	Interfacing technology to auto communicating with patient monitors, measuring devices.
	Networking and integrating diverse medical data sources in real-time systems.
	Algorithms to process data to support decision making in real time.
	Integrated multimedia networks for telemedicine, disaster management and home
	Networking and integrating diverse medical data sources in real-time systems.
	Algorithms to process data to support decision making in real time.
	Integrated multimedia networks for telemedicine, disaster management and home

Active projects in Real-Time Clinical Informatics are:

• Real-time patient and key event data acquisition and processing in pre-hospital settings (Vital Signs Data Recorder-VSDR)
• Automated status display for operating room management (VBS)
• Signal acquisition and processing to monitor patients with traumatic brain injury
• Integrated video-audio data acquisition in trauma and surgery( VASNET )
• Telemedicine testbed (Telecontrol Center).

Project Reports Online

• University of Maryland Center for Research in Patient Safety, Agency for
  Healthcare Research and Quality, 2005
• Coordination and Technology: National Survey of Trauma Center, Nationaly Science Foundation, 2005.
  
• Expertise Coordination and Information Technology in High Velocity Work Environments Final report, National Science Foundation, 2005.
• Distant Leadership Under Stress, Army Research Institute, 2003.
• Coordination Processes and Awareness Support in Dynamic Work Environments, National Science Foundation, 2002.
• Auditory Warning Signals in Critical Care Settings, National Patient Safety Foundation, 2001.
• Distributed Decisionmaking: Remote diagnosis and collaboration in a dynamic environment, NASA, 1999.
• Stress and Deicsion Making in Trauma Patient Resuscitation, Office of Naval Research