Hands-Free Decision Support

There have been significant advancements in automated probabilistic reasoning and decision analysis leading to effective computer-based medical diagnostic and test management tools. These systems enhance the quality and efficiency of healthcare by (1) providing advice about the likelihoods of alternative diseases, given sets of presenting symptoms, and (2) performing cost-benefit analyses about the next best tests to perform, through a formal weighing of the costs and benefits of alternative tests in a way that maximizes expected utility. However, a critical problem remains largely unsolved: We have found that even modest inconveniences imposed on the ergonomics of medical care by diagnostic systems often make them unacceptable to medical personnel. We will perform research on possibilities of handsfree computation in medicine and develop demonstration "hands-free" interfaces. Such interfaces allow medical diagnostic systems to become computer-based "medical associates" that work elegantly with healthcare personnel who perform examinations and procedures. We will extend KI's diagnostic systems interface, which rely on a mouse-based "select and click" approach, to work with healthcare personnel in a handsfree manner through integration with (1) speech recognition to drive menu selection, (2) personal head-mountable displays, and (3) sensors for automated entry of vital signs. We have already been successful at preliminary experiments in hands-free computation in medicine, and, thus, are Anticipated Benefits/Potential Applications - Development of techniques that allow people to access computer information in a handsfree manner promises to benefit applications in the defense and civilian sectors. The interface methods will prove valuable for diagnosis of equipment failure and in situation assessment. The technology also promises to be useful in a diverse set of civilian applications, from systems for assisting intensive-care unit physicians to process control.