Information analysis and validation of intelligent monitoring systems in intensive care units

Validation of intelligent systems is an important task to perform. Typically the results of the validation analysis are used to verify whether or not the system satisfies the initial design requirements, and to acquire new knowledge and/or refine the knowledge already acquired. In practice, the validation of intelligent systems usually requires the application of several different techniques (e.g., retrospective, prospective, quantitative). In this work the authors present the methodology devised to validate PATRICIA: an intelligent monitoring system designed to advise clinicians on the management of patients dependent on mechanical ventilation. The application of this methodology requires that appropriate validation paradigms are selected, depending on both the application domain and the characteristics of the intelligent system. The article also presents and discusses validation results.