The Defense Health Agency recently hosted a "Data Strategy Reverse Industry Day," providing a platform for industry representatives to share their expertise with DHA leaders. Unlike traditional industry events where government agencies outline their requirements for vendors, this event flipped the script. DHA leaders heard from industry leaders as they presented insights on cutting-edge commercial technologies which could foster an environment to empower data-driven decision-making and enable continuous improvement across DHA’s core operational domains.
The event was designed to foster innovative communication and dialogue about how DHA can deploy new and quickly developing technologies to enhance its mission to support warfighters during training and deployment, provide care for service members and their families at military hospitals and clinics, and manage enterprise services to ensure seamless daily operations.
“This Reverse Industry Day represents a pivotal step in fostering collaboration with our industry partners,” said Kathleen Berst, DHA acting assistant director for support and the component acquisition executive. “By listening to their innovative ideas and capabilities, we can better align our efforts to improve care, enhance mission readiness, and ensure DHA remains at the forefront of military health care innovation.”
At the core of the discussion surrounding DHA’s capability gaps was the need for enhanced data analytics.
"Data is one of military health care's most powerful tools, offering decision advantage to for all military health care professionals — from medics on the battlefield to medical logistics personnel," said Dr. Jesus Caban, DHA chief data and analytics officer. "Our goal is to transform the vast amounts of clinical and business data we manage into actionable insights to enable informed decision-making, enhance readiness, and improve outcomes for service members and their families."
The day was a key opportunity for military heath care leaders and industry to connect, collaborate, and learn about cutting-edge commercial solutions to advance warfighter readiness.
“Events like the Reverse Industry Day are essential for fostering meaningful collaboration between government and industry,” said Christine Sordillo, strategic advisor to the DHA component acquisition executive. “By engaging directly with industry leaders, we can reduce acquisition risks, explore innovative solutions, and ensure our requirements are aligned with the latest advancements in technology and services.”
The Reverse Industry Day was one way DHA is rapidly adopting Department of War acquisition transformation core principles to accelerate delivery of mission-critical health capabilities to the warfighter, including:
Shaping the future of military health care
The Reverse Industry Day provided valuable insights to inform future requirements, reduce acquisition risks, and explore innovative ideas before finalizing solicitations — with the goal to streamline and expedite warfighter health care solutions. DHA leaders emphasized that approaches to bridging the specified capability gaps must align with DHA’s efforts to bolster combat medical readiness and improve health service delivery for the warfighter.
By engaging directly with innovative industry partners, DHA continues to advance its mission of improving care and strengthening readiness for service members and their families.