The Defense Department’s newly modernized electronic health record system was recognized as successful after a week-long deployment at Fairchild Air Force Base in Spokane, Washington, officials there said today.

Fairchild’s  92nd Medical Group became the first military hospital or clinic to use MHS Genesis, a single, integrated electronic inpatient and outpatient health record that transforms health care delivery within DoD’s Military Health System, officials said.

Allows for Team Approach

MHS Genesis enables a team approach in providing health services to patients, said Air Force Surgeon General Lt. Gen. (Dr.) Mark A. Ediger.

“In medicine today, we leverage a lot of different skill sets on a health care team,” he said. “[MHS Genesis] goes well beyond the traditional doctor-patient interaction and leverages skill sets such as nutrition, exercise physiology and disease management. It’s a very collaborative tool that allows the team to share a common picture.”

Initial feedback from health care providers at Fairchild is positive, said Stacy Cummings, program executive officer of Defense Healthcare Management Systems.

Cutting-Edge Technology

The cutting-edge technology gives patients and health care providers a continuum of care and allows the Department of Veterans Affairs and private-sector health care partners the necessary data to collaborate and make the best possible health care decisions, Cummings said.

MHS Genesis maintains electronic health record interoperability with VA medical facilities through the use of Joint Legacy Viewer, she noted. “We have integrated MHS Genesis to be a tool that will continue to allow us to share data with VA and our commercial health care providers who are our partners,” she said.

The TRICARE military health system’s patient portal has been redesigned to allow for access to MHS Genesis by patients and health care providers, officials said, adding that patient safety and the security of data is paramount in the new streamlined and intuitive system.

“We have a responsibility to provide the best possible user experience to our beneficiaries, and … we delivered on that responsibility,” Cummings said.

System To Expand Worldwide

In the next year, MHS Genesis will deploy at three other military medical facilities in Washington state: Naval Hospital Bremerton in Bremerton; Madigan Army Medical Center in Tacoma and Naval Hospital Oak Harbor in Oak Harbor.

“Full deployment will be complete in 2022 across the nation and around the world for our facilities, medical treatment facilities and garrisons,” Cummings said. “We remain confident that MHS Genesis will transform the delivery of health care and advanced data sharing through a modern electronic health record for service members, veterans and their families.”