The annual gathering of the Military Health System brings some 4000 health experts together for plenary sessions, workshops and informal information exchanges. The theme of the 2012 meeting, "Healthcare to Health," conveys a comprehensive approach to wellness.

In conjunction with the 2012 MHS Conference, Dr. Jonathan Woodson, assistant secretary of defense, Health Affairs, appeared on the Pentagon Channel to discuss the future of the military health system.  "The force will be smaller but it will be more agile and it will leverage technology to get the job done," Woodson said.

The annual gathering of the Military Health System brings some 4,000 health experts together for plenary sessions, workshops and informal information exchanges.  The theme of the 2012 meeting, "Healthcare to Health," conveys a holistic approach to medical care.

The 2012 MHS Stakeholders report is now available online. The report entitled “Healthcare to Health” gives a snapshot of the accomplishments achieved over the past year by Military Health System. I n addition, the MHS outlines strategic initiatives for the coming year aligned with the Quadruple Aim platform: Readiness, Population Health, Experience of Care, Per Capita Cost and Learning and Growth.

The annual gathering of the Military Health System brings some 4,000 health experts together for plenary sessions, workshops and informal information exchanges.  The theme of the 2012 meeting, “Healthcare to Health,” conveys a comprehensive approach to wellness.

The 2012 Military Health System Conference opened today at the Gaylord National Hotel and Convention Center at National Harbor, Md. Throughout the week more than 4000 expected military medical professionals will join to share knowledge and best practices and to hear from top medical officers about the bigger MHS picture.

Today’s countdown update highlights awards ceremonies that will be held during the 2012 MHS conference which runs from Jan. 31 to Feb.2, 2012 at the Gaylord Convention and Conference in National Harbor, Md.

This week, the DoD Patient Safety Program published the “PSP Resource Guide.” The guide was developed to engage, educate and equip readers with products, services, tools and solutions made available by the PSP to help ensure the safe delivery of health care in the Military Health System. This comprehensive 18-page guide includes:

• Program background
• Training and enrollment information for patient safety champions and facilities interested in teamwork using TeamSTEPPS
• Learning opportunities for commanders, leaders, providers and patients
• Information about  measurement and reporting of patient safety events and implementation of safety change through analyses
• Online PSP and partner resources and publications
• An overview of continuing education credit-eligible learning opportunities offered by the PSP

The guide also provides links and contact information for readers interested in learning more about the highlighted resources. The majority of PSP tools and resources are available to anyone providing care in the MHS, and are easily accessible through the PSP website.  These evidence-based resources offer opportunities to make any care environment safer and more communicative, in order to build a culture of safety. The resource guide can be downloaded from the PSP website at: http://www.health.mil/dodpatientsafety/ProductsandServices/resourceguide.

The Army 2020 Generating Health and Discipline in the Force-Report 2012, often referred to as the Army Gold Book, was released last week; an update to the Army Red Book published in 2010.  The report summarizes progress made in enhancing health, discipline and readiness of the force and represents the next phase in the Army’s campaign to counter stress associated with more than a decade of war.

The Gold Book addresses the challenges that service members and families currently face and provides an assessment of what the Army has learned with respect to physical and behavioral health conditions, disciplinary problems and the remaining gaps in Army policy.  It is meant to serve as a resource for leaders, policy makers, commanders, and service providers, as they work together to address the challenges that lie ahead.

Read the full report.

With less than two weeks to go before the 2012 Military Health System conference kicks off, the countdown clock is ticking. Today's preview highlights a few of the speakers and special guests.