- Lawmakers Blast DoD Officials Over EHR Implementation Delays
Before MHS GENESIS was implemented at those sites, Fairchild Air Force Base clinic providers had to either send their patients into town for medical imaging services or wait several days for the clinic to get their results.
The 92nd Medical Group would send an x-ray to Travis Air Force Base in California for processing, with turnaround time of between 24 to 48 hours. The entire process relied on using multiple electronic systems, with multiple steps, and multiple procedures to complete, Afarin said.
“The process in place with Travis was cumbersome and impeded workflow. It took a lot longer than necessary to interpret the x-rays, formalize a report, and subsequently cut and past the report into another system before seeing the results,” he explained.
With MHS GENESIS, medical personnel use one electronic system which reduces potential errors, increases reliability, and makes results immediately available.
“Convenience, timely, and expert interpretation are the most significant impacts of MHS GENESIS as a unifying electronic health record and an integrating force multiplier. MHS GENESIS has laid the foundation of real time, collaborative provider-to-provider consultation on radiology studies, no matter which military department or sector of the world as long as there is internet connectivity,” Afarin related.
DHA Worked with NHB To Integrate Medical Image Exchange
The Defense Health Agency (DHA) and the NHB Information Management Department worked together to integrate the 92nd Medical Group’s medical imaging exams into the NHB workflows, enabling NHB to handle 418 x-ray exams for the 92nd Medical Group last year.
“Implementing a new, seamless electronic health record was an enormous undertaking. Naval Hospital Bremerton moved from sustaining several existing electronic health and dental records to employing a new one that consolidates health and dental information into a single record,” commented Navy Lt. Cmdr. Bryan Wooldridge, NHB chief medical information officer and family physician.
“We took a commercial off-the-shelf product and, along with the Program Executive Office, Defense Healthcare Management Systems, identified areas for improvement within the new system so we could take corrective actions not only for our hospital but to prioritize future enhancements based on the needs of other military treatment facilities. What was key to the success of MHS GENESIS was that we were committed to making it happen,” Wooldridge said.
NHB’s Radiology Department has a history of providing medical imaging support to remote sites. In 2011, NHB magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) technologists sent examination protocols and related instructions for the newly installed MRI machine at Camp Leatherneck in Afghanistan.
The MRI was an important addition for the Marine Base in Helmand Province to help diagnose and care for such medical concerns as concussions, at that time the most common combat-related injury.
“Our ability to provide real-time radiographic interpretations for another military treatment facility is just one example of how the new electronic health record is moving us into the 21st century,” said Navy Capt. Jeffrey Bitterman, NHB commanding officer. “A fully integrated EHR and future interoperability with the VA will provide greater continuity for our beneficiaries from accession to retirement.”
