WO2014011159A1

WO2014011159A1 - Medical sensors with placement sensing technology

Info

Publication number: WO2014011159A1
Application number: PCT/US2012/046094
Authority: WO
Inventors: Mohamad M. EL-GHOUCH
Original assignee: Draeger Medical Systems, Inc.
Priority date: 2012-07-10
Filing date: 2012-07-10
Publication date: 2014-01-16

Abstract

A sensing system is described that can detect incorrect placement, or placement disruption, of a medical or physiological sensor relative to a patient, such as the patient's skin. In addition, the sensing systems may include a control unit that can modify at least one operational parameter upon detection of improper placement of one or more medical or physiological sensors. Related systems, apparatus, methods and articles are also described.

Description

MEDICAL SENSORS WITH PLACEMENT SENSING TECHNOLOGY

FIELD

[0001] The current subject matter is directed to medical sensors such as physiological sensors that incorporate placement sensing technology to ensure that such sensors are properly placed / adhered in relation to a patient.

BACKGROUND

[0002] Some medical sensors, or physiological sensors, can provide a number of benefits to both patients and medical staff. Examples of medical sensors include electrocardiography (ECG) electrode sensors and pulse oximeter sensors. One reason medical sensors can be beneficial is due to their ability to provide continuous analysis and information of vital physiological conditions, such as heart rate, hydration, etc. However, for some medical sensors to be beneficial they must be correctly placed relative to the patient in order to work properly. For instance, some medical sensors, such as ECG electrodes, must be in direct contact with the patient's skin in order to attain accurate physiological readings.

[0003] Incorrect placement of some medical sensors may be unknown to either the patient or medical staff due to the sensor continuing to provide sensed data as if it were correctly placed, such as from sensing surrounding ambient light or noise. In this situation, physiological issues may arise in the patient while the sensor continues to provide sensed data that does not indicate any physiological issues with the patient. In another scenario, a medical sensor may become incorrectly placed relative to a patient, such as due to movement by the patient, which disrupts the attachment of one or more sensors resulting in sensed data indicating the patient is experiencing physiological problems. In this situation, an alarm may even be sounded and may cause medical staff to become unnecessarily alarmed about one or more physiological problems associated with the incorrectly placed sensor readings. It is also possible that medical staff may treat the patient, such as with medicaments, in response to the incorrectly placed sensor. Under these circumstances, the patient may be placed at risk due to unnecessary treatment and medical staff efforts may be unnecessarily wasted on false sensor readings. Furthermore, issues resulting from incorrect placement of a sensor may arise in many other sensor applications outside of medical devices. Therefore, there is a need for sensors, such as medical sensors, to include one or more features which alert either the patient or medical staff of incorrectly placed sensors.

SUMMARY

[ 0004 ] In one aspect, a sensing system is disclosed that includes at least one or more physiological sensors to sense one or more physiological attributes of the patient. In addition, one or more placement sensors may be coupled to or adjacent to at least one physiological sensor. The sensing system may further include a control unit coupled to one or more physiological sensors and one or more placement sensors. The control unit may cause at least one operational parameter of the sensing system to be modified when data received by at least one placement sensor is outside a predetermined data range indicating that at least one physiological sensor is at least partially incorrectly placed relative to the patient. [ 0005 ] Some methods for modifying one or more operational parameters of a sensing system include receiving, by a control unit of the sensing system, data from either one or more physiological sensors of the sensing system that are configured to be placed in relative to a patient, such as in contact with the patient's skin, in order to sense one or more physiological attributes of the patient. The method may further include receiving, by a control unit, data from one or more placement sensors of the sensing system, coupled to or adjacent to at least one physiological sensor. Furthermore, the method for modifying one or more operational parameters of the sensing system may include modifying, by the control unit, at least one operational parameter of the sensing system when data sent to the control unit by at least one placement sensor is outside a predetermined data range that indicates that the at least one placement sensor and coinciding physiological sensor, is incorrectly placed relative to the skin.

[ 0006 ] Computer program products are described that comprise non-transitory machine- readable media storing instructions, which when executed, cause one or more data processors across one or more systems to perform the operations described herein. Similarly, computer systems are also described that may include a processor and a memory coupled to the processor. The memory may include one or more programs that cause the processor to perform one or more of the operations described herein. Methods may be implemented by one or more data processors across one or more computing systems.

[ 0007 ] Placement sensors (i.e., proximity, temperature, skin touch sensors) can detect of at least one of when the physiological sensor is in proper placement and when the physiological sensor is not correctly placed for proper functioning. By combining one or more placement sensors with physiological sensors into a single sensing system the placement sensors may provide useful information regarding whether the physiological sensors are properly positioned in order to ensure accurate physiological data is being gathered from the sensors. The ability of the sensing system to detect placement of one or more physical sensors can improve patient care, as well as save cost and time by allowing a user to more efficiently fix any problems associated with an incorrectly placed physiological sensor.

[ 0008 ] The details of one or more sensing systems and methods are set forth in the accompanying drawings and the description below. Other features and advantages will be apparent from the description and drawings, and from the claims.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[ 0009] These and other aspects will now be described in detail with reference to the following drawings.

[ 0010 ] FIG. 1 illustrates a sensing system comprising a physiological sensor and at least one placement sensor.

[ 0011 ] FIG. 2 shows a cross section view of the sensing system of FIG. 1 taken along line 2-2 of FIG. 1.

[ 0012 ] FIG. 3 illustrates a sensing system including wireless communication. [ 0013] FIG. 4 illustrates a sensing system including a physiological sensor having a generally disc shape with more than one placement sensor functionally coupled to a perimeter of the physiological sensor.

[ 0014 ] FIG. 5 illustrates a sensing system including a placement sensor generally centrally located relative to a contact area of the physiological sensor.

[ 0015] FIG. 6 shows a cross section view of the sensing system of FIG. 5 taken along line 6-6 of FIG. 5.

[ 0016] FIG. 7 illustrates another sensing system comprising more than one placement sensor functionally coupled to a physiological sensor where both sensors do not require direct contact with a patient's skin.

[ 0017 ] Like reference symbols in the various drawings indicate like elements.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[ 0018 ] This document describes systems, methods, and articles that may improve patient monitoring by integrating one or more skin touching or proximity technologies with one or more medical sensor in order to prevent false readings from medical sensors, such as from incorrect placement of medical sensors relative to a patient. Additionally, this document describes systems, methods, and articles for modifying at least one operational parameter of the system upon detection of incorrect placement, or placement disruption, of one or more medical sensors, as will be described in greater detail below. [ 0019 ] Some medical sensors, such as pulse oximeters or electrocardiography (ECG) electrodes use sensing technology to detect various physiological conditions of a patient. For example, ECG electrodes may use sensing technology to detect the electrical activity of a patient's heart over a period of time by detecting and amplifying electrical charges on the patient's skin resulting from a beating heart. This may be accomplished by attaching at least one ECG sensor to the outer skin of the patient. Also, pulse oximeters may monitor the oxygenation of a patient's hemoglobin by placing a sensor on or near the patient's skin in order to pass light with varying wavelengths through the patient to a photodetector. The change in absorbance of light through the patient may enable the pulse oximeters to monitor the oxygenation of blood in the patient.

[ 0020 ] Positioning of both the ECG electrodes and pulse oximeters relative to the patient is important for proper functioning and gathering of accurate physiological readings. For instance, in order for the ECG electrodes to work properly and obtain accurate physiological data the ECG electrodes must be in contact with a patient's skin. In the event one or more ECG electrodes were disrupted, such as no longer in contact with the patient's skin, accurate heart activity readings would no longer be attainable by the ECG electrodes. Similarly, contact with a patient's skin is necessary for some pulse oximeters to obtain accurate physiological readings from a patient. Some pulse oximeters may function properly without direct skin contact but may require positioning within a generally defined proximity relative to the patient. Therefore, both proximity and skin touch sensors may be functionally integrated with one or more physiological sensors, such as pulse oximeters and ECG sensors, for assisting in determining the placement of the physiological sensors. Proximity and skin touch sensors may detect at least one of when the physiological sensor is in proper placement and when the physiological sensor is not correctly placed for proper functioning. By combining either proximity or skin touch sensors with physiological sensors into a single sensing system the proximity or touch sensors may provide useful information regarding whether the physiological sensors are properly positioned in order to ensure accurate physiological data is being gathered from the sensors.

[ 0021 ] Skin touch and proximity sensing technologies may be found in various devices and applications. For instance, skin touch sensing technologies may be found in touch screen cell phones for activating and interacting with the cell phone. Some skin touch technologies include capacitive sensors which may work by detecting anything that is conductive or has a dielectric different than air. Proximity sensing technologies may be found in, for example, some car bumpers which may be used to detect the proximity of adjacent cars and objects. In general, a proximity sensor may be able to detect the presence of one or more target objects within a generally predefined distance range without any physical contact. Some proximity sensors may emit an electromagnetic field,

electromagnetic beam, or electromagnetic radiation in a general direction of the target object in order to detect changes in a return signal. Furthermore, proximity sensors may differ depending on the target object. For instance, a capacitive sensor may be more suitable when the target object is comprised of at least part of a human body. By way of further example, an inductive proximity sensor may be more suitable when the target object is comprised of metal. However, any variety of skin touch and proximity sensing technologies may be used in any of the sensing systems disclosed herein without departing from the scope of this disclosure. For instance, another example of proximity and skin touch sensing technologies can include temperature sensing technology that can detect one or more surface or surrounding temperatures.

[ 0022 ] FIGS. 1 and 2 illustrate a sensing system 10 which includes at least one placement sensor 12 functionally coupled or adjacent to a physiological sensor 14. The sensing system 10 may also include a control unit 16. The control unit 16 may include software and hardware, such as a processor 18, which may collect and analyze data provided by one or more placement sensors 12 and physiological sensors 14. In addition, the control unit 16 may function to monitor data received by at least one of the placement sensors 12 and change at least one operational parameter of the sensing system 10 when data being received by a placement sensor 12 is outside of a predetermined data range. Data received by a placement sensor 12 may include values or signals upon which the control unit 16 may analyze against a predetermined data range, such as a value range or signal range. In addition, the control unit 16 may include an alarm 20 which may be activated by the control unit 16 upon receiving data outside of a predetermined data range by one or more placement sensors 12.

[ 0023 ] Placement sensors 12 may function to provide data to the control unit 16 relating to the positioning of one or more physiological sensors 14 relative to the patient, such as the patient's skin 1 1. Any one placement sensor 12 may include a skin touch sensor for sensing contact between a physiological sensor 14 and the patient's skin 1 1. Alternatively or in combination, any one placement sensor 12 may include a proximity sensor for sensing the placement of the physiological sensor 14 relative to the patient, such as the patient's skin 1 1. Furthermore, one or more temperature sensors may be used in addition to or in place of one or more placement sensors 12 of the sensing system 10. For example, a temperature sensor may detect one or more of a surface, e.g., the patient's skin, or surrounding temperature. In addition, the control unit 16 can receive the temperature readings from the temperature sensors for processing and analysis. By way of further example, the control unit 16 can be programmed to have a predetermined temperature range of at or near body temperature which may generally define a temperature range indicating that one or more physiological sensors 16 are correctly placed relative to the patient. A predetermined temperature range, such as at or near body temperature, can be programmed in the sensing system 10 such that when the control unit 16 receives a temperature reading outside of the predetermined temperature range, the control unit can modify at least one operational parameter of the sensing system 10.

[ 0024 ] A number of factors may be considered when determining the appropriate number of placement sensors 12 (i.e., inductive proximity sensors, capacitive proximity sensors, skin touch sensors, temperature sensors, etc.) to have functionally coupled or adjacent to a physiological sensor 14 including the type of physiological sensor 14, the size and shape of the physiological sensor 14, the material comprising the physiological sensor 14, and the sensitivity of the physiological sensor 14. Therefore, any number of placement sensors 12 may be functionally coupled or adjacent to one or more physiological sensors 14 without departing from the scope of this disclosure.

[ 0025 ] FIG. 2 shows more than one placement sensor 12 functionally coupled to a physiological sensor 14 and in contact with the skin 1 1 of a patient. As shown in this configuration, the placement sensors 12 allow a contact area 22 of the physiological sensor 14 to contact the skin 1 1 of the patient. For example, in the event the contact area 22 of the physiological sensor 14 were to lose contact with the skin 1 1 of the patient, at least one of the placement sensors 12 may sense the loss in contact. The control unit 16 may then be able to detect a change in data readings by one or more placement sensors 12 detecting a loss in contact between the contact area 22 and skin 1 1. Once the control unit 16 detects a change in data readings indicating a loss in contact, the control unit 16 may modify at least one operational parameter of the sensing system 10, such as activating the alarm 20. For example, the alarm 20 may alert the patient and medical staff and allow at least the medical staff to attend to the patient in order to ensure the physiological sensors 14 are properly placed. This may ensure that accurate data is being received by the physiological sensors 14 which may allow improved patient monitoring and treatment of one or more physiological attributes of a patient.

[ 0026 ] In addition or alternatively, some operational parameters that may be modified by the sensing system 10 upon detection of an improperly placed physiological sensor 14 include one or more visual cues, such as one or more lights, which may change in either brightness or color. The ability of the sensing system 10 to either audibly alert or visually cue medical staff relating to the placement of one or more physiological sensors 14 saves time and money by reducing wasted time treating a patient, or not treating a patient, based on incorrect data being received by improperly placed physiological sensors 14. Furthermore, the sensing system 10 may include one or more monitors 30 for displaying, for example, one more data or representations relating to one or more physiological attributes or placement conditions of one or more placement sensors 12 or physiological sensors 14. [ 0027 ] In addition, any one of the placement sensors 12 may be either in direct or wireless communication with the control unit 16. For example, FIG. 3 illustrates a sensing system 100 including wireless communication between the placement sensors 12 and control unit 16. The sensing system 100 may further include a wireless transmitter 28 for transmitting wireless data characterizing the sensed physiological attributes to a remote data collection system 26. Furthermore, the wireless transmission may be deactivated when the at least one operational parameter of the sensing system is modified. FIG. 1 illustrates an example of direct communication between the placement sensors 12, physiological sensor 14 and the control unit 16. Any one of the physiological sensors 14 or placement sensors 12 may be in direct or indirect communication with the control unit 16.

[ 0028 ] The control unit 16 may be programmed such that when any one of the placement sensors 12 reads data outside of a predetermined data range, at least one of the operational parameters of the sensing system 10 is modified. For example, the control unit 16 may activate an alarm 20 when data acquired by at least one of the placement sensors 12 is outside of a predetermined data range. Additionally, the control unit 16 may be able to indicate to a user which placement sensor 12 is reading data outside of a predetermined range. This may be particularly beneficial when the sensing system includes more than one placement sensor 12. The ability of the control unit 16 to indicate which placement sensor 12 is reading data outside of a predetermined data range may save cost and time by allowing a user to more efficiently fix any problems associated with an incorrectly placed

physiological sensor 14. [ 0029 ] In addition, the control unit 16 may be programmed to disrupt the power source to any power consuming source in the sensing system 10 anytime after the control unit 16 receives placement sensor 12 data which is outside of a predetermined data range. This may benefit the sensing system 10 by saving power, such as battery power, that would otherwise be wasted on sensing of incorrect data. Any number of sensing system 10 operational parameters may be modified in response to the control unit 16 receiving placement sensor 12 data outside of a predetermined data range without departing from the scope of this disclosure. As shown by way of example in FIG. 3, a self contained power source 24 may be in direct communication with either the placement sensor 12 or physiological sensor 14. The power source 24 may form a compact unit with the placement sensor 12 and physiological sensor 14, as shown in FIG. 3.

[ 0030 ] The placement and coupling of one or more placement sensors 12 relative to any one of the physiological sensors 14 may vary and may depend on, for example, allowing at least one of the physiological sensors 14 or placement sensors 12 to work most effectively. For instance, some physiological sensors 14 may include a contact area 22 which is configured to contact the skin 1 1 of a patient and allow the physiological sensor 14 to gather physiological data. However, the contact area 22 may be comprised of a material which may impede the ability of the placement sensor 12 to effectively sense physiological sensor 14 positioning relative to the patient's skin 1 1. In this instance, it may be beneficial to ensure placement of the placement sensor 12 is not in direct contact with the contact area 22 of the physiological sensor 14. However, any number of configurations between one or more placement sensors 12 and physiological sensors 14 may be constructed without departing from the scope of this disclosure.

[ 0031 ] FIGS. 1-6 illustrate example sensing systems having various placement sensor 12 configurations. In particular, FIG. 1 shows a physiological sensor 14 functionally coupled to two placement sensors 12, with a placement sensor 12 positioned on opposite sides of the physiological sensor 14. By way of further example, FIG. 3 shows a physiological sensor 14 functionally coupled to four placement sensors 12, with a placement sensor 12 positioned on each side of the physiological sensor 14. These configurations may be beneficial, for example, if the physiological sensor 14 is flexible such that it may peel away from the skin 11 along one or more sides. In the configurations shown in FIGS. 1 and 3, at least one placement sensor 12 may be able to detect partial detachment, such as due to peeling, of the physiological sensor 14 from the skin 11 of the patient. In addition, and particularly if one of the placement sensors 12 is a proximity sensor, the sensor system 10 may detect at least partial misalignment or positioning outside of a predetermined distance range of the physiological sensor 14 relative to the target object. A target object can, for example, be at least one of a plastic object, a metal object, or at least part of a patient's skin 11. However, any target object may be comprised of any number of materials without departing from the scope of this disclosure.

[ 0032 ] FIG. 4 illustrates another sensing system 200 comprising a physiological sensor 14 having a generally disc shape with more than one placement sensor 12 coupled to the perimeter of the physiological sensor 14. Similar to the sensing systems 10 and 100 discussed in FIGS. 1 and 3, the placement of the placement sensors 12 relative to the physiological sensor 14 may allow the control unit 16 to detect partial detachment or partial incorrect placement of the physiological sensor 14. Any number of placement sensors 12 may be functionally coupled in any number of configurations to a physiological sensor 14 without departing from the scope of this disclosure.

[ 0033 ] FIGS. 5 and 6 illustrate another sensing system 300 comprising a placement sensor 12 generally centrally located relative to the contact area 22 of the physiological sensor 14. This configuration may allow a single placement sensor 12 to ensure at least partial contact between the contact area 22 of a physiological sensor 14 and the patient, such as the skin 1 1. Additionally, this configuration may allow the placement sensor 12 and physiological sensor 14 to form a more compact unit. Alternatively or in addition, this configuration may allow a single placement sensor 12, such as a proximity sensor, to detect at least partial misalignment or positioning outside of a predetermined distance range of the physiological sensor 14 relative to the patient.

[ 0034 ] FIG. 7 illustrates another sensing system 400 comprising more than one placement sensor 12 functionally coupled to a physiological sensor 14. For example, the physiological sensor 14 shown in FIG. 7 can include a physiological sensor that does not require direct contact with a patient's skin, such as a pulse oximeter. Therefore, the more than one placement sensors 12 shown in FIG. 7 can be proximity sensors that can sense the placement of the physiological sensor 14 relative to a target object, such as a patient's skin 11. For example, a proximity sensor can detect the presence of one or more target objects within a generally predefined distance range without any physical contact. Therefore, if the presence of one or more target objects, such as the patient's skin 11 , is not detected within a predefined distance range relative to the physiological sensor 14 at least one of the placement sensors 12 can sense improper placement of the target object. The control unit 16 may then be able to detect data readings by one or more placement sensors 12 detecting the improperly placed target object relative to the physiological sensor 14. Once the control unit 16 detects data readings indicating the target object placed outside of a predetermined distance range relative to the physiological sensor 14, the control unit 16 may modify at least one operational parameter of the sensing system 10, such as activating the alarm 20. For example, the alarm 20 may alert the patient and medical staff and allow at least the medical staff to attend to the patient in order to ensure the target object is properly placed relative to the physiological sensor 14.

[ 0035 ] The number and placement of the placement sensors 12 relative to the physiological sensors 14 are not limited to the example sensing systems 10, 100, 200, 300 and 400 disclosed herein. Any number of configurations may be formed between one or more placement sensors 12 with one or more physiological sensors 14, including having the placement sensor 12 functionally coupled or adjacent to a top side of the physiological sensor 14, without departing from the scope of the provided disclosure.

[ 0036 ] Aspects of the subject matter described herein may be embodied in systems, apparatus, methods, and/or articles depending on the desired configuration. In particular, aspects of the subject matter described herein may be realized in digital electronic circuitry, integrated circuitry, specially designed ASICs (application specific integrated circuits), computer hardware, firmware, software, and/or combinations thereof. These various implementations may include implementation in one or more computer programs that are executable and/or interpretable on a programmable system including at least one

programmable processor, which may be special or general purpose, coupled to receive data and instructions from, and to transmit data and instructions to, a storage system, at least one input device, and at least one output device.

[ 0037 ] These computer programs (also known as programs, software, software applications, applications, components, or code) include machine instructions for a programmable processor, and may be implemented in a high-level procedural and/or object- oriented programming language, and/or in assembly/machine language. As used herein, the term "machine-readable medium" refers to any computer program product, apparatus and/or device (e.g., magnetic discs, optical disks, memory, Programmable Logic Devices (PLDs)) used to provide machine instructions and/or data to a programmable processor, including a machine-readable medium that receives machine instructions as a machine-readable signal. The term "machine-readable signal" refers to any signal used to provide machine instructions and/or data to a programmable processor.

[ 0038 ] The implementations set forth in the foregoing description do not represent all implementations consistent with the subject matter described herein. Instead, they are merely some examples consistent with aspects related to the described subject matter. Wherever possible, the same reference numbers will be used throughout the drawings to refer to the same or like parts. Although a few variations have been described in detail above, other modifications or additions are possible. In particular, further features and/or variations may be provided in addition to those set forth herein. For example, the implementations described above may be directed to various combinations and subcombinations of the disclosed features and/or combinations and subcombinations of several further features disclosed above. In addition, the logic flows described herein do not require the particular order shown, or sequential order, to achieve desirable results. Other embodiments may be within the scope of one or more claims.

[ 0039 ] Although a few sensing systems have been described in detail above, other modifications are possible. Other sensing systems may be within the scope of the following claims.

Claims

CLAIMS What is claimed is:

1. A sensing system comprising:

one or more physiological sensors to sense one or more physiological attributes of a patient;

one or more placement sensors coupled to or adjacent to at least one physiological sensor; and

a control unit coupled to the one or more physiological sensors and the one or more placement sensors that causes at least one operational parameter of the sensing system to be modified when data received by at least one placement sensor is outside a predetermined data range that indicates the at least one physiological sensor is at least partially incorrectly placed relative to the patient.

2. The sensing system of claim 1 , wherein the at least one placement sensor includes one or more of a temperature sensor, a skin touch sensor configured to be placed in contact with skin of the patient, or a proximity sensor configured to be placed within a predetermined distance range relative to a target object.

3. The sensing system of claim 2, wherein the skin touch sensor comprises a capacitive sensor measuring capacitance.

4. The sensing system of claim 2, wherein the proximity sensor includes one of an inductive proximity sensor or a capacitive proximity sensor.

5. The sensing system of claim 2, wherein the target object includes at least one of a plastic, metal, or at least part of a human body.

6. The sensing system of any of the preceding claims, wherein modifying at least one operational parameter comprises: turning off one or more power sources in the sensing system.

7. The sensing system of any of the preceding claims, further comprising a self-contained power source.

8. The sensing system of any of the preceding claims, further comprising a wireless transmitter for transmitting wireless data characterizing the sensed physiological attributes to a remote data collection system, and wherein wireless transmission is deactivated when the at least one operational parameter is modified.

9. The sensing system of any of the preceding claims, wherein at least one physiological sensor is a pulse oximeter sensor.

10. The sensing system of any of the preceding claims, wherein at least one physiological sensor is an ECG electrode sensor.

11. The sensing system of any of the preceding claims, further comprising a notification element that provides a visual cue indicating whether data sent to the control unit by one or more placement sensors indicates that the placement sensors are correctly placed relative to the patient.

12. The sensing system of any of the preceding claims, further comprising a monitor for displaying one or more data or representations relating to data sent to the control unit.

13. The sensing system of any of the preceding claims, further comprising a notification element that provides an audible alarm indicating whether data sent to the control unit by one or more placement sensors is outside a predetermined data range that indicates that the placement sensors are incorrectly placed relative to the patient.

14. A method for modifying one or more operational parameters of a sensing system comprising:

receiving, by a control unit of the sensing system, data from one or more physiological sensors of the sensing system that are configured to be placed in contact with skin of a patient to sense one or more physiological attributes of the patient;

receiving, by a control unit, data from one or more placement sensors of the sensing system, coupled to or adjacent to at least one physiological sensor; and

modifying, by the control unit, at least one operational parameter of the sensing system when data sent to the control unit by at least one placement sensors is outside a predetermined data range that indicates that the at least one placement sensor is incorrectly placed relative to the skin.

15. The method of claim 14, further comprising at least one placement sensor comprising one or more of a temperature sensor, a skin touch sensor configured to be placed in contact with skin of the patient, or a proximity sensor configured to be placed within a predetermined distance range relative to a target object.

16. The method of claims 14 or 15, further comprising a sensing system wherein the skin touch sensor comprises a capacitive sensor measuring capacitance.

17. The method of any of claims 14 through 16, further comprising a sensing system wherein the proximity sensor includes one of an inductive proximity sensor or a capacitive proximity sensor.

18. The method of any of claims 14 through 17, further comprising activating an audible alarm indicating whether data sent to the control unit by one or more placement sensors is outside a predetermined data range indicating that the placement sensors are incorrectly placed relative to the patient.

19. The method of any of claims 14 through 18, further comprising modifying the at least one operational parameter of the sensing system including providing a visual cue indicating whether data sent to the control unit by one or more placement sensors indicates that the placement sensors are correctly placed relative to the patient.

20. The method of any of claims 14 through 19, further comprising modifying the at least one operational parameter of the sensing system including displaying one more data or representations relating to data sent to the control unit on a monitor.

21. The method of any of claims 14 through 20 further comprising modifying the at least one operational parameter of the sensing system including turning off one or more power sources in the sensing system.

22. The method of any of claims 14 through 21 , further comprising a self- contained power source.

23. The method of any of claims 14 through 22, further comprising at least one physiological sensor including a pulse oximeter sensor.

24. The method of any of claims 14 through 23, further comprising at least one physiological sensor including an ECG electrode sensor.

25. The method of any of claims 14 through 24, further comprising modifying the at least one operational parameter of the sensing system including deactivating wireless transmission of wireless data characterizing sensed physiological attributes from a wireless transmitter to a remote data collection system.