FORM 2
THE PATENTS ACT  1970
(39 of 1970)
&
THE PATENTS RULES  2006
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION
[See section 10  Rule 13]

1. TITLE OF THE INVENTION: Systems and Methods for Providing Patient Data Storage And Retrieval in Health Care Set Ups

2. APPLICANT(S)

a. Name: Vi BEYOND TECHNOLOGIES INDIA PRIVATE LIMITED
b. Nationality: Indian (IN)
c. Address: Plot No 24  Achuta Cooperative Society  Road No 10  Banjara Hills  Hyderabad 500033

3. PREAMBLE TO THE DESCRIPTION
THE FOLLOWING SPECIFICATION PARTICULARLY DESCRIBES THE INVENTION AND THE MANNER IN WHICH IT IS TO BE PERFORMED

FIELD OF THE DISCLOSURE

This invention generally relates to data management systems in healthcare setups  and more particularly  to systems and methods for providing patient data storage and retrieval in healthcare setups.

BACKGROUND OF THE DISCLOSURE

Most health care institutions world over  including those in the United States and India  still maintain their patient records in the form of paper charts. This scenario has rendered the task of integrating and seamlessly managing patients’ records across hospitals  clinics and between countries or states  almost impossible as usually  in such paper based systems  there is no proper track of medical records. Further  in such paper based systems makes maintenance of records very difficult. Moreover  in such systems there is always a chance of duplicity of records  non-portability  and other such problems.
Smart cards are a relatively new technology which has been used in healthcare for some time. A smart card is about the size of a credit card with an imbedded computer chip on which a large amount of information is stored  as shown in Fig. 1. In addition  the information on smart card may be modified and updated easily with the appropriate equipment. Smart cards could be used by hospitals  clinics and may be extended to health insurers and medical stores to retrieve information and health data. These smart cards are being used in other countries since 1995  especially in Europe. Germany has had medical cards since 1995  and France  Belgium  and Slovenia are offering them since 1998. France is has approximate cost savings of $333 million through reduction in paperwork in 1998 when smart cards were introduced.
In the Indian context smart card for health or smart card from hospitals to its patient in terms of percentage is negligible. There are nearly 16 000 private hospitals in India in addition to around 12 000 government hospitals. Today in most hospitals  medical records are paper based and are stored manually in designated areas in the hospitals – some have a dedicated medical records room and officers looking after them.
However  with increasing volumes of patients over the years  the physical records occupy more space and its more time consuming and difficult to retrieve the patient record. The paper based records are also prone to damage by weather  rodents  dust  etc.
Therefore  there is a need to develop systems and methods for providing patient data storage and retrieval in healthcare setups. Specifically  there is a need to introduce smart cards for digitization of medical records. Further  there is a need to develop systems and methods to reduce paper work in health care industry  thereby allowing a seamless managing of patients’ records across hospitals  clinics and between countries or states  possible. Furthermore  there is a need to make sure that there is a proper track of medical records in the healthcare system. Moreover  there is a need to make maintenance of records of patients easy and reliable. Also  there is a need to reduce duplicity of records  and add to portability of the records in healthcare setups. There is a further need to provide an environmental friendly means to manage patient records in healthcare setups.

OBJECTS OF THE DISCLOSURE

In view of the foregoing disadvantages inherent in the prior art  the general purpose of the present invention is to provide data management systems in healthcare setups.
Accordingly  an object of the present invention is to provide systems and methods for providing patient data storage and retrieval in healthcare setups.
Another object of the present invention is to provide systems and methods to reduce paper work in healthcare industry  thereby allowing a seamless managing of patients’ records across hospitals  clinics and between countries or states  possible.
A yet another objective of the present invention is to provide an automated platform that makes sure that there is a proper track of medical records in the healthcare system.
A yet another objective of the present invention is to provide maintenance of records of patients easy and reliable.
A yet another objective of the present invention is to provide a platform that reduces duplicity of records  and add to portability of the records in health care set ups.
A yet another object of the present invention is to provide an environmentally friendly means of maintenance and managing of records in healthcare setups.
A yet another object of the present invention is to provide means for reducing the costs of managing patient records in healthcare setups.
These and other objects and advantages of the invention will be clear from the ensuing description.

SUMMARY OF THE DISCLOSURE

In light of the above objects  disclosed is a system for providing patient data storage and retrieval in healthcare setups  in which the system includes a plurality of smart data storing cards  with each of the plurality of the smart data storing cards capable of storing data related to a patient. In one embodiment  each of the data storing cards includes at least one memory capable of storing characteristic data and multimedia rich data corresponding to at least one patient  and at least one authentication module in communication with the at least one memory. The at least one authentication module is adapted to store at least one authenticating signature. The authenticating signature is adapted to ensure authorized access to the data  which is stored in the at least one memory  thereby securing the data stored in the each of the smart data storing card. Further  the system includes an application module capable of communicating with the smart data storing card. The application module is adapted to read and write data on the smart data storing card. Moreover  the system includes an application server having a database  wherein the application server is in communication with the application module. The application module is configured to receive the data stored on the smart data storing cards and store the data in the database  and retrieve the data stored in the database and transmit the retrieved data to the application module. The retrieved data is used by healthcare professionals  such as doctors  pharmacists  and the like  for accessing the records of the patient.
In another aspect  the present invention provides a smart data storing card for storing data related to a patient. The smart data storing card is designed to be used in healthcare set ups. In one embodiment  the data storing card includes at least one memory capable of storing characteristic data and multimedia rich data corresponding to at least one patient. Further  the smart data storing card includes at least one authentication module in communication with the at least one memory. The at least one authentication module is adapted to store at least one authenticating signature. The authenticating signature is adapted to ensure authorized access to the data stored in the at least one memory  thereby securing the data stored in the smart data storing card.
In yet another aspect  the present invention provides a method for providing a patient storage and retrieval system in healthcare setups. The method includes providing plurality of smart data storing cards. Each of the plurality of the smart data storing cards is capable of storing data related to a patient. Further  the method includes providing one or more one or more card readers installed at the health care set  wherein the one or more card readers are capable of communicating with the plurality of smart data cards. Moreover  the method includes providing an application module capable of communicating with the one or more card readers  wherein the application module is adapted to read and write data on the smart data storing card. In addition  the method includes providing an application server capable of communicating with the application module  wherein the application server is capable of storing the data stored on the smart data storing cards in a database and transmitting the stored data to the application module.
These aspects together with other aspects of the present invention  along with the various features of novelty that characterize the present invention  are pointed out with particularity in the claims annexed hereto and form a part of this present invention. For a better understanding of the present invention  its operating advantages  and the specific objects attained by its uses  reference should be made to the accompanying drawing and descriptive matter in which there is illustrated an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The advantages and features of the present invention will become better understood with reference to the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings  in which:
Fig. 1 illustrates a representative diagram of a conventional smart card  in accordance with various embodiments of the present invention;
Fig. 2 is a block diagram of a system for providing patient data storage and retrieval in healthcare setups  in accordance with various embodiments of the present invention;
Fig. 3 is an architecture diagram of the system of Fig. 2  in accordance with various embodiments of the present invention;
Figs. 4-5 are various block diagram of the system of Fig. 2 explaining how the said system works  in accordance with various embodiments of the present invention;
Fig. 6 is an exemplary smart card  in accordance with various embodiments of the present invention;
Fig. 7 is an exemplary card reader  in accordance with various embodiments of the present invention;
Fig. 8 is a flow diagram of a method for providing patient data storage and retrieval in healthcare setups  in accordance with various embodiments of the present invention;
Fig. 9 illustrates various types of smart cards  in accordance with various embodiments of the present invention; and
Figs. 10 and 11 are representative diagrams of system architecture of the healthcare network  in accordance with various embodiments of the present invention.
Like reference numerals refer to like parts throughout the description of several views of the drawing.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DISCLOSURE

The exemplary embodiments described herein detail for illustrative purposes are subject to many variations in structure and design. It should be emphasized  however  that the present invention is not limited to the particular embodiments shown and described. It is understood that various omissions and substitutions of equivalents are contemplated as circumstances may suggest or render expedient  but these are intended to cover the application or implementation without departing from the spirit or scope of the present invention.
The terms “a” and “an” herein do not denote a limitation of quantity  but rather denote the presence of at least one of the referenced item.
The terms “having”  “comprising”  “including”  and variations thereof signify the presence of a component.
The present invention provides systems and methods for providing patient data storage and retrieval in healthcare setups. The present invention also provides a smart data card for storing data related to a patient  the smart data storing card designed to be used by various healthcare professionals engaged in healthcare setups. The term ‘heathcare setups’ as mentioned herein refers to various institutions for providing medical treatments including various hospitals  nursing homes  doctor clinics  medical research institutions  and the like. The term ‘healthcare professionals’ as mentioned herein refers to various professionals  such as doctors  pharmacists  nurses  hospital employees  healthcare agencies  NGOs  and the like  engaged in administering healthcare to the public. The system for providing patient data storage and retrieval will now be described as system 100 with reference to Figs. 1-7.
As shown in Figs. 2 and 7  the most important component of system 100 are plurality of smart data storing cards 10 (hereinafter referred to as smart cards 10 and individually referred to as smart card 10). The smart card 10 is the hub of data storage and access of the system 100. In one embodiment  each of the data storing cards 10 is capable of storing data related to at least one patient. In one embodiment  the smart card 10 is also capable of storing data related to one or more healthcare professionals in the healthcare setups  especially the details of the professionals involved in treating the at least one patient. A representative example of an exemplary smart data storing card is shown in Fig. 6.
The smart card 10 is different from the smart cards known in the art. One of the important differences is in terms of the level of data security the smart card 10 provides.
More specifically  in one embodiment  the smart card 10 includes at least one memory 12 capable of storing characteristic data and multimedia rich data corresponding to at least one patient. The characteristic data of the patient includes  but is not limited to  name  address  photograph  and medical information  such as blood type  drug allergies and regular prescribed drugs. The multimedia rich data includes  but is not limited to  scan photography images and voice recordings  and the like. Therefore  the smart card 10 includes data that is potentially important to facilitate rapid diagnosis of patients’ potential symptoms  maintain medical history for the lifespan of patients  provides an ease of maintenance of medical records  and helps immediate medical care on emergency.
In one embodiment  the smart card 10 includes at least one authentication module 14 (only one authentication module 14 is shown in figures) in communication with the at least one memory 12. The authentication module 14 makes the data stored in the smart card 10 secure. Specifically  the at least one authentication module 14 is adapted to store at least one authenticating signature. In one embodiment  the authenticating signature is an electronic signature of a patient. In another embodiment  the authentic signature is an electronic signature of a medical practitioner treating the patient. Therefore  it will become apparent to the person skilled in the art that the authentication signature is adapted to ensure authorized access to the data stored in the at least one memory 12. Alternatively  it may be said that the authentication signature restricts the access to the data stored in the smart data card 12 to only authorized persons. This secures the data stored in the each of the smart card 10. In this manner  the data stored in the smart card 10 is secured and thereby compliant of various regulations  such as HIPPA regulations.
Technically  the smart card 10 supports multiple card read/write devices and supporting varied storage capacities. This aspect will be explained later in the specification. Further  the smart card may support various standards  such as ISO/IEC 14443ISO/IEC 7810 and ISO/IEC 7816 series  and is capable of handling large storage capacities – starting from 64 KB storage capacity to large storage capacity (16MB or 4GB more). The various details of the smart card 10 are shown in Fig. 8. As shown in Fig. 8  the smart card 10 may be contact type  contactless type  or a multi-component type.
Further  the system 100 of the present invention includes an application module 20. The application module 20 is capable of communicating with the smart card 10. Further  the application module 20 is adapted to read and write data on the smart card 10. The application module 20 may include one or more software to provide the read and write data capabilities. Suitable examples of the software may include  but are not limited to  HTTP  Enterprise JavaBeans (EJBs) Java Transaction API (JTA)  RMI-IIOP Java IDL  JDBC  Java Message Service (JMS)  Java Naming and Directory Interface (JNDI)  JavaMail JavaBeans Activation Framework (JAF)  Java API for XML Parsing (JAXP)  J2EE Connector Architecture Java Authentication and Authorization Service (JAAS)  UXM tools  ECM (MS share point)  and the like. In this manner  the application module 20 ensures that the smart cards 10 may be read or written for accessing or storing information thereon. In one embodiment  the application module 20 is configured on portable devices  such as mobile phones  and the like. In another embodiment  the application module 20 is configured on fixed computing devices  such as personal computers  consoles  and the like.
In one embodiment  the system 100 further includes at least one application server 30 (only one application server 30 is shown in figures). The application server 30 is adapted to be in communication with the application module 20. In one embodiment  the application server 30 may be located at a remote location  i.e.  the application server 30 may be present at a location distinct from the healthcare setups where the system 100 may be implemented. In one embodiment  the application server 30 is communicably coupled with the application module 20 via a web server 50. This allows the application server 30 to be located at a remote location as to the healthcare setup. However  it should be clearly understood that the remote location of the application server 30 should not be construed as a limitation to the present invention. Accordingly  in an embodiment  the application server 30 may be located at a premise of the healthcare setup.
In yet another embodiment  the application server 30 is configured to receive the data stored on the smart cards 10. Further  the application server 30 is configured to store the data in the database 40.
In another embodiment  the application server 30 may be configured to retrieve the data stored in the database 40 and transmit the retrieved data to the application module 20  thereby allowing a medical professional  such as a doctor or pharmacists to access the records of the patients. In this manner  the system 100 allows managing patients’ records across hospitals  clinics and between countries or states.
The application server 30 is similar to known in the art servers. In one embodiment  the application server 30 is IBM RAC server - IBM System x3755 M3. Similarly  the database 40 is similar to known in the art databases. In one embodiment  the database 40 is an Oracle database.
Further  the system 100 includes one or more card readers 60 installed at healthcare setups. More particularly  these card readers 60 may be installed at strategic locations in healthcare setups  where information about records of the patients is highly likely required.
The card readers 60 are adapted to come in communication with the application module 20 and the smart cards 10. An exemplary card reader 60 is shown in Fig. 7. The shown card reader 60 is a radio frequency operated card reader that communicates when the smart card 10 comes close to the card reader 60. The dominant protocol under the ISO 14443 is MIFARE  followed by the EMV standards.
The primary function of the card readers 60 are adapted to read data on the data storing card and transmit the data to the application module 20. The card readers 60 are made to be highly portable so that any medical professional may be able to carry it to read the records of the patients. In one embodiment  the operational coupling between the card readers 60 and the application module 20 may be wired. In another embodiment  the operational coupling between the card readers 60 and the application module 20 may be wireless. This may add to the portability of the data access as the card readers 60 may be carried to various locations within the healthcare setups for utilization.
The use of system 100 will now be explained. As mentioned above  the system 100 may be used by various stake holders of healthcare setups  such as doctors  pharmacists  hospital staff  and even patients to access their medical records. To use the system 100  smart cards 10 may be issued to various healthcare professionals. The smart cards 10 include characteristic and multi-media type information about the patients. The characteristic data of the patient includes  but is not limited to  name  address  photograph  and medical information  such as blood type  drug allergies and regular prescribed drugs. The multimedia rich data includes  but is not limited to  scan photography images and voice recordings  and the like. Further  the smart cards 10 may include various other details  such as healthcare professional details  hospital details and the like  as explained above.
To use the system 100 for accessing the medical records  various card readers 60 may be installed in the healthcare setups. Further  dedicated/ standalone terminals having the application module 20 may be installed at various locations in the healthcare setups. A healthcare professional  such as a doctor  may use the smart cards 10 of patients to access patient’s records. In one embodiment  a healthcare professional may couple the smart cards 10 with the various card readers 60 in healthcare setups. The coupling may be physical or contactless depending upon the protocols used by the card readers 60 and the smart cards 10. In one embodiment  the healthcare professional may bring the smart card of a patient in contact with the nearest card reader 60.
On bringing the smart card 10 in contact with the card reader 60  the data stored on the smart card 10 can be accessed by the healthcare professional. In one embodiment  he/ she may have to utilize his/ her authentication signature to access the data. In such a case  the healthcare professional might have to enter a particular PIN  password or his digital or electronic signature for authentication.
Upon successful authentication  the healthcare professional may be able to access the records of the patient. For example  the professional may be able to access basic patient information such as name  address  photograph  and medical information such as blood type  drug allergies and regular prescribed drugs and also  medical records can be augmented to include multimedia-rich information  such as scan photography images and voice recording  to facilitate rapid diagnosis of patients’ potential symptoms and problems. The access is through a mobile or a computing device used by the healthcare professional.
In one embodiment  the healthcare professional may be able to edit the data store on the smart cards 10 by using the application module 20. More specifically  the healthcare professional may be able to use a computer terminal on which the application module 20 is installed to edit any bio-data details. In one embodiment  the application module 20 may be installed on portable devices  such as PDAs  or mobile phones  which are in sync with the card readers 60 to access and edit the medical records of the patients.
In one embodiment  the data corresponding to patients may be written and stored in remote servers  such as the application server 30. In such cases  healthcare professionals may first profile the patients  by adding relevant characteristic and multimedia information corresponding to the patients. This information may be written on the smart card 10 and simultaneously stored to the database 40 of the application server 30 via the web server 50. To access the information  the healthcare professionals may simply connect the smart cards 10 to the card readers 60. In such a case  the information may be retrieved from the database 40 via the application server 30 and the web server 50. In this manner  the system 100 provides a seamless way to access information about various patients across hospitals in states and countries.
In one aspect  the present invention provides a method for providing a patient storage and retrieval system in health care setups. The method will be explained with the help of Fig. 8. As shown in Fig. 8  the method 400 begins at step 410. At step 420  the method 400 includes providing plurality of smart data storing cards  such as smart cards 10  wherein each of the plurality of the smart data storing cards capable of storing data related to a patient. In one embodiment  each of the data storing cards includes at least one memory capable of storing characteristic data and multimedia rich data corresponding to at least one patient  and at least one authentication module in communication with the at least one memory  wherein the at least one authentication module is adapted to store at least one authenticating signature.
Thereafter  the method proceeds to step 430  wherein the method 400 includes providing one or more card readers  such as card readers 60  installed at the health care set ups  wherein the one or more card readers are capable of communicating with the plurality of smart data cards. Thereafter  the method 400 includes providing an application module  such as application module 20  capable of communicating with the one or more card readers  wherein the application module is adapted to read and write data on the smart data storing card  at step 440. Further  the method 400 includes providing an application server  such as application server 30  capable of communicating with the application module  wherein the application server is capable of storing the data stored on the smart data storing cards in a database and transmitting the stored data to the application module  at step 450. In one embodiment  the application server is adapted to receive the data stored on the smart data storing cards  store the data in the database  retrieve the data stored in the database  and transmit the retrieved data to the application module. The method 400 thereafter terminates at step 460.
In another aspect  the present disclosure provides a machine-readable medium including machine-readable instructions which causes a processor to perform some or all of the operations described above. In some embodiments  the operations may be performed by specific hardware components that contain hardwired logic. Those operations may alternatively be performed by any combination of programmed computer components and custom hardware components.
A machine-readable medium may include any mechanism for storing or transmitting information in a form readable by a machine (e.g.  a computer)  including but not limited to Compact Disc Read-Only Memory (CD-ROMs)  Read-Only Memory (ROMs)  Random Access Memory (RAM)  Erasable Programmable Read-Only Memory (EPROM)  and a transmission over the Internet.
The systems and methods of the present invention have various advantages. Firstly  the systems and methods reduce paper work in health care industry  thereby allowing a seamless managing of patients’ records across hospitals  clinics and between countries or states  possible. Secondly  the systems and methods ensure that there is a proper track of medical records in the healthcare system. Further  the systems and methods allow maintenance of records of patients to become easy and reliable. Also  the systems and methods reduce duplicity of records  and add to portability of the records in health care set ups.
Some specific advantages of the systems and methods are:-
1. Rapid  accurate identification of patients; improved treatment
a. Speeding manual processes such as hospital admissions/registration
b. Counterfeit-proof card
2. Reducing fraud through authentication of provider/patient visits and insurance eligibility
a. Reducing fraud; streamlining administrative procedures
b. Optimized business processes
c. Managing the information flow within the system-at-large
d. Facilitation of electronic claims submissions
e. Acting as a payment source; and
f. Linking disparate data sources in a secure fashion
3. Acting as a portable data repository and Improved confidential communications within the health care system
a. A convenient way to carry data between systems or to sites without systems
b. Smart cards allow a patient who sees numerous physicians to have their information updated and provide complete information; such as  all prescription drugs that they take.
c. Providing access to accurate information on a timely basis
4. Reducing record maintenance costs
a. Decreasing expenses from patient verification to insurance confirmation
b. Cost reductions
Some of the advantages offered to providers are as follows:
1. Enhance patient loyalty and improve patient relationships.
2. Speed up registration with less paperwork.
3. Improve communication and information sharing between points of care.
4. Let patients view and update their medical information online.
5. Convert paper records to digital format.
6. Reduce erroneous and fraudulent registration information.
7. Track and log with all changes to the patient’s information.
8. Comply with rules about information portability and privacy.
9. Maintain patient confidentiality using the best information security technologies on the market.
Some of the advantages to the patients are as follows:
1. Patients can access their healthcare information online and are better informed.
2. Gives patients control of their medical information.
3. Patients have added assurance that their personal information is released on a “need-to-know” basis.
4. Reduced waiting and duplicate paperwork during registration.
The foregoing descriptions of specific embodiments of the present invention have been presented for purposes of illustration and description. They are not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the present invention to the precise forms disclosed  and obviously many modifications and variations are possible in light of the above teaching. The embodiments were chosen and described in order to best explain the principles of the present invention and its practical application  and to thereby enable others skilled in the art to best utilize the present invention and various embodiments with various modifications as are suited to the particular use contemplated. It is understood that various omissions and substitutions of equivalents are contemplated as circumstances may suggest or render expedient  but such omissions and substitutions are intended to cover the application or implementation without departing from the spirit or scope of the present invention.

CLAIMS
We claim:

1. A system (10) for providing patient data storage and retrieval in healthcare setups  the system comprising:
a plurality of smart data storing cards (10)  each of the plurality of the smart cards capable of storing data related to a patient  each of the smart cards comprising:
at least one memory capable of storing characteristic data and multimedia rich data corresponding to at least one patient  and
at least one authentication module in communication with the at least one memory  wherein the at least one authentication module is adapted to store at least one authenticating signature 
wherein the authenticating signature is adapted to ensure authorized access to the data stored in the at least one memory  thereby securing the data stored in the each of the smart card;
an application module (20) capable of communicating with the smart card  wherein the application module is adapted to read and write data on the smart card; and
an application server (30) having a database  wherein the application server is in communication with the application module and is configured to 
receive the data stored on the smart cards and store the data in the database  and
retrieve the data stored in the database and transmit the retrieved data to the application module 
wherein the data is received by one or more healthcare professionals  thereby enabling them to access medical records of the patient.

2. The system as claimed in claim 1  wherein the characteristic data of the patient includes name  address  photographs  Person Identification Number (PIN) security  blood type  drug allergies  and prescribed drugs data corresponding to the patient.

3. The system as claimed in claim 1  wherein the multimedia-rich data includes scanned photography images and voice recordings corresponding to the patient.

4. The system as claimed in claim 1 comprising one or more card readers (60) installed at various locations in healthcare set ups  wherein the one or more card readers are in communication with the application module and are capable of communicating with the smart cards  and wherein the one or more card readers are adapted to read data on the data storing card and transmit the data to the application module.

5. The system as claimed in claim 1  wherein the application server is located at a remote location  and wherein the application server is communicably coupled with the application module via a web server.

6. A smart data storing card for storing data related to a patient  the smart card designed to be used in healthcare setups  the smart card comprising:
at least one memory capable of storing characteristic data and multimedia rich data corresponding to at least one patient; and
at least one authentication module in communication with the at least one memory  wherein the at least one authentication module is adapted to store at least one authenticating signature 
wherein the authenticating signature is adapted to ensure authorized access to the data stored in the at least one memory  thereby securing the data stored in the data storing card.

7. The smart data storing card as claimed in claim 5  wherein the characteristic data of the patient includes name  address  photographs  Person Identification Number (PIN) security  blood type  drug allergies  and prescribed drugs data corresponding to the patient.

8. The smart data storing card as claimed in claim 5  wherein the multimedia-rich data includes scanned photography images and voice recordings of the patient.

9. The smart data storing card as claimed in claim 5  wherein the authenticating signature is an electronic signature of at least one of a patient or a medical practitioner treating the patient.

10. A method (400) for providing a patient storage and retrieval system in healthcare setups  the method comprising:
providing plurality of smart data storing cards  each of the plurality of the smart cards capable of storing data related to a patient;
providing one or more card readers installed at the healthcare setups  wherein the one or more card readers are capable of communicating with the plurality of smart cards;
providing an application module capable of communicating with the one or more card readers  wherein the application module is adapted to read and write data on the smart cards; and
providing an application server capable of communicating with the application module  wherein the application server is capable of storing the data stored on the smart cards in a database and transmitting the stored data to the application module 
wherein the data is received by one or more healthcare professionals  thereby enabling them to access medical records of the patient.

11. The method as claimed in claim 10  wherein each of the data storing cards comprises 
at least one memory capable of storing characteristic data and multimedia rich data corresponding to at least one patient  and
at least one authentication module in communication with the at least one memory  wherein the at least one authentication module is adapted to store at least one authenticating signature.

12. The method as claimed in claim 10  wherein the application server is adapted to 
receive the data stored on the smart data storing cards 
store the data in the database 
retrieve the data stored in the database  and
transmit the retrieved data to the application module.

Dated this 28th Day of August 2012

On Behalf of the Applicant

Abhishek Pandurangi
Agent for the Applicant
ABSTRACT

Systems and Methods for Providing Patient Data Storage And Retrieval in Health Care Set Ups

Disclosed are systems and methods for providing patient data storage and retrieval in healthcare setups. The system (100) includes a plurality of smart data storing cards (10) capable of storing data related to patients. Each smart card includes at least one memory capable of storing characteristic data and multimedia rich data corresponding to a patient. Further  the smart card has an authentication module (20) adapted to store an authenticating signature. The signature is adapted to ensure authorized access to the data stored in the memory  thereby securing the data stored in the each of the smart card. Further  the system includes an application module capable of communicating with the smart card  and an application server (30) having a database. The application server receives the data stored on the smart data storing cards  stores the data in the database  and retrieves the data stored in the database  if needed.
Fig. 2