Veterans Health Administration Strategies

IT Strategies in the Veterans Health Administration
Stacey Swanson
Southern New Hampshire University
PAD-631

IT Strategies in the Veterans Health Administration
Overview
The Veterans Health Administration (VHA) is the largest integrated health system in the United States. The VHA annually services over 5 million veterans at more than 1,400 sites of care, including hospitals, community clinics, nursing homes, domiciliaries, readjustment counseling centers, and various other facilities (Providers, n.d., para.2). IT solutions currently in use at the VHA include: Telehealth, MyHealtheVet, E-consult and secure messaging. These modalities are being utilized to address two of the agency’s priority goals: access to care and backlogs of…show more content…
Current Technology Demand & Response System The VA’s focus for 2014-2015 is to “deliver seamless and integrated services while increasing the efficiency an effectiveness of virtual access” (Veterans Affairs Strategic Plan 2014-2020, 2013,pg.18). The VA currently utilizes telehealth, which is a virtual health service for Veterans who reside in rural areas that do not have ready access to VA healthcare providers. This allows for improved access and efficient care management for these rural individuals and those with chronic conditions or Veterans with impaired mobility issues. To address the backlog issue for claims processing, the VA has put in place the “ebenefits” portal. This is a joint supported portal between the Department of Defense (DoD) and the VA. The patient-driven portal gives Veterans the opportunity to access and submit information on their terms (Web Content View, n.d., pg.1). Part…show more content…
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