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OKINAWA, Japan - Okinawa recently became the first overseas location to adopt the U.S. Navy’s newest program designed to revolutionize Navy medicine and the Military Health System.
The Medical Home Port model, which was launched in the U.S. early this year, is in alignment with the Navy’s strategic goal for patient and family-centered care.
The model, currently being used at Camps Kinser and Courtney, introduces a new approach to providing comprehensive health care to active-duty service members and their families.
“The model offers service members and their family’s team-based care which includes a physician leader, a mid-level provider, such as a physician assistant, a nurse, corpsman or medical technician, and the front desk staff,” said Cmdr. George L. Dyer, director of branch clinics U.S. Naval Hospital Okinawa. “The goal of this approach is that there will always be someone in the doctor’s office that knows the patient and their situation.”
Cmdr. Steven A. Kewish, a family medicine physician with USNH, said the plan is to incorporate additional members to the health care.
“In the future there could also be pharmacists, nutritionists and social workers,” he said.
The new model introduces many improvements from the way Navy medicine conducts business, said Kewish.
“In the past, patients and providers were matched but if they couldn’t be put together in an appointment, the system fell apart,” said Kewish. “In the new model, patients will always be cared for by their team. If they need to see a physician, it will be from their team. If they need to talk to a nurse or have a question answered, it will be done from within their team.”
Along with offering patients a team of health care providers, this new model will make access to care easier, as well as help cut medical costs.
“Patients will have same- or next-day access to clinics, which will cut down emergency room visits and save money,” said Dyer.
Medical Home Port allows patients to book appointments, communicate with their care takers and view their lab results using the Internet.
“There is a program we use called Relay Health,” said Dyer, “It provides a private and secure messaging platform for patients to easily communicate with their doctors and health team.”
The new model is scheduled to begin at Camp Lester’s Family Medicine Clinic Aug. 1.
For more information, contact your health care provider.
| Date Taken: | 07.08.2011 |
| Date Posted: | 07.07.2011 18:31 |
| Story ID: | 73399 |
| Location: | OKINAWA, JP |
| Web Views: | 594 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Navy implements new health care model, by Cpl Brianna Christensen, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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