Department of Veterans Affairs (VA)

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Wait Time Critical in VA Care

Frank Lee | SC Times | January 15, 2012

USA Today analyzed data on wait times at veterans centers following a survey in which VA clinicians raised concerns that the agency was ill-equipped to handle the growing numbers of veterans with mental health issues. The analysis of VA-provided data showed that it took three to six weeks for veterans to begin mental health treatment at more than 30 percent of Department of Veterans Affairs hospitals in the United States.

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We Are Entering A New Era Of Health Information Exchange

Brian Ahier | Healthcare IT News | September 4, 2012

The Nationwide Health Information Network Exchange (NwHIN Exchange, or just Exchange) has been operating as an ONC program since 2007. For the past three years, a rapidly growing community of public and private organizations (Exchange Participants) has been routinely sharing information in production. Read More »

Website Makes Tracking Health Records Easier For Vets

Staff Writer | YNN | June 21, 2013

Managing health care and keeping track of records can be complicated. The Department of Veterans Affairs has an online system for veterans that makes some of that easier. Read More »

What A Concept: VA Pitches Its Electronic Health Records System To Defense

Bob Brewin | Nextgov | February 27, 2013

The Defense Department went shopping for a new electronic health record system on Feb. 8, just two days after plans to develop a $4 billion integrated electronic health record with the Veterans Affairs Department went south. Read More »

What Dangers Does EHR Adoption Present to Patient Safety?

Kyle Murphy | EHR Intelligence | June 23, 2014

The successful implementation and adoption of EHR technology could still lead to EHR-related patient safety concerns unless procedures are put in place to monitor and remediate them, according to research recently published in the Journal of the American Medical Informatics Association. Read More »

What EHR Vendors Need To Know About Applying For Upcoming DoD Demos

Tom Sullivan | Government Health IT | October 8, 2013

Nothing like a tight turnaround on a massive tech and consulting project: The DoD on Friday published a notice — albeit neither solicitation nor RFP — revealing that during the week after next it will hold demonstrations essentially courting the EHR to replace its AHLTA. Oh, yes, and applications are due end of October 9, as in tomorrow. Read More »

What Happened At The White House Mental Health Conference?

Kat Dawkins | PsychCentral | June 10, 2013

There is a lot of interest about what the Obama administration had to say about the state of our mental healthcare system and perceptions of mental illness in the United States. Straight from the White House itself, I bring to you highlights of their press release on the Mental Health Conference... Read More »

What You Need To Know About Health IT Apps

Staff Writer | Nextgov | December 17, 2013

The Veterans Affairs Department has begun rolling out custom-designed medical apps as part of a larger effort to make health care something patients can carry in their pockets.  Apps could be used to help with self-help strategies, patient participation, and could be new tools for the doctors themselves. [...] Read More »

What's wrong with IT at Veterans Affairs?

Frank Konkel | FCW | May 1, 2013

Projects are stalled, and top leaders have departed. Investigations and agency sources paint a bleak picture inside VA's IT office. Read More »

When mHealth And Telehealth Become 'Just Healthcare'

Eric Wicklund | Government Health IT | July 25, 2013

mHealth and telehealth: Two popular terms in the healthcare lexicon these days. And two whose days are numbered. Read More »

Where ‘Socialized Medicine’ Has a U.S. Foothold

Uwe E. Reinhardt | New York Times | August 3, 2012

Remarkably, Americans of all political stripes have long reserved for our veterans the purest form of socialized medicine, the vast health system operated by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (generally known as the V.A. health system). If socialized medicine is as bad as so many on this side of the Atlantic claim, why have both political parties ruling this land deemed socialized medicine the best health system for military veterans? Or do they just not care about them?”

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White House Innovation Fellows On Open Health Data

Leah Stern | Health Data Consortium | August 27, 2012

Last Thursday, the White House announced the inaugural crop of Innovation Fellows. We’ve been eagerly anticipating this announcement, heralding as it does the latest exciting open government venture. In particular, we’re excited that three of the fellows are working on Blue Button, a tool to allow millions of Americans to download their personal health information electronically. Read More »

White House Names Blue Button Innovation Fellows

Paul Barr | ModernHealthcare.com | August 23, 2012

President Barack Obama named three Presidential Innovation Fellows who will be charged with promoting wider use of the Blue Button, a health information technology service implemented in the Veterans Affairs Department to allow patients and their families to more easily download medical and health records. Read More »

Who Wants a Cell Plan with Unlimited Texting? VA Does.

Bob Brewin | NextGov | July 24, 2012

The Veterans Affairs Department would like to end up with only one cellphone bill. VA earlier this month kicked off the process for a national contract that covers voice and data airtime, as well as hardware such as smartphones and tablet computers... Read More »

Why Do Medicare, Medicaid And Veterans Affairs Deal With Drug Costs Differently?

David Sell | Philly.com | April 9, 2013

Countries sometimes do things differently from other countries or gain reputations for doing certain things well or poorly. But within a country, within the same federal government, does it make sense to do things differently among departments or programs that are providing essentially the same service? Read More »