The EHR implementation at Lovell FHCC is the first joint DOD-VA rollout
Leidos’ Partnership for Defense Health announced the deployment of MHS-Genesis, the U.S. Department of Defense’s Federal Electronic Health Record System, at the Captain James A. Lovell Federal Health Care Center (Lovell FHCC) in Chicago.
The deployment marked the first time that DoD and the Department of Veterans Affairs, the Federal Electronic Health Record Modernization Office and the Leidos team have collaborated on a joint government EHR implementation, the company says.
The FHCC-integrated joint subsite serves both DoD and VA patient populations. This deployment added 1,200 DoD and 2,000 VA clinicians, healthcare providers and other end users.
MHS GENESIS is now operational in more than 3,890 locations worldwide with more than 197,200 end users serving more than 9.5 million beneficiaries.
For the VA, the implementation represents a significant step forward in their EHR implementation efforts.
Leidos is the lead systems integrator and prime contractor for the MHS Genesis implementation, with the Leidos Partnership for Defense Health (LPDH) consisting of industry leaders including Oracle Health, Accenture, Henry Schein One and dozens of supporting companies.
Leidos provides leadership and day-to-day oversight of all programmatic functions, as well as the overall architecture and implementation strategy.
This includes virtual/in-person training during system deployments and providing critical cybersecurity expertise to ensure the MHS GENESIS system meets the requirements necessary to protect DOD information.
Through MHS GENESIS, service members and their family members receive an integrated health record that follows them throughout their lives and supports their health decisions and healthy lifestyles.
The platform is designed to help improve healthcare outcomes by seamlessly exchanging health information across the federal government.
With MHS GENESIS, doctors no longer switch between two systems; patient files are available in one common federal EPD.
This means patients spend less time repeating health histories to healthcare providers, undergoing duplicate tests, or managing printed medical records.
Additionally, healthcare providers can access patient data such as treatment records, service medals and awards, housing status and other information to ensure patients receive earned benefits as they transition to civilian life.
The platform also provides a more seamless healthcare experience for patients, whether they receive care from the DoD, VA, the Department of Homeland Security’s U.S. Coast Guard, or any other healthcare system that participates in the collaborative health information exchange.
βThe integration helps patient providers make more informed decisions about patient care because they have access to more relevant data,β Alyssa Pettus, Leidos director of external communications, told HealthcareITNews via email.
She noted that more federal agencies will soon adopt it.
In 2015, Leidos was awarded the $4.3 billion contract to modernize the DoD’s existing healthcare systems.
In addition to DoD garrison facilities and VA locations, the Leidos team has deployed Genesis to the U.S. Military Entrance Processing Command, the U.S. Coast Guard, and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
βIn addition to achieving 100 percent DoD implementation, the FHCC implementation represents a significant milestone for the VA’s overall EHR implementation efforts, as well as DoD-VA connectivity, furthering their future implementation efforts,β said Pettus .
Nathan Eddy is a healthcare and technology freelancer based in Berlin.
Email the writer: nathaneddy@gmail.com
Twitter: @dropdeaded209