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Innovation

PACE bannerThe Office of Strategy Management aims to redefine the pace of innovation for the Military Health System (MHS) in service, process, and technology innovation by empowering individuals, sharing best practices, and collaborating with strategic partners. The Office advances health and readiness across the full spectrum of military operations in combat, community, and global environments.

OSM defines innovation as accelerating the adoption of transformational initiatives, so we can advance a “medically ready force and a ready medical force.”

PACE graphicWhy Innovation?

Exponential change is reshaping today’s healthcare environment and the continued viability of the MHS depends on its ability to innovate. Incremental improvements are no longer enough to keep pace with change. Embracing innovation allows the MHS to build the necessary partnerships, processes, and technologies to serve warfighters and their families better.

What's new in the MHS?

We are focused on continually finding innovative ways to protect, support, and advance the health and welfare of the Defense community. We remain on the cutting edge of medical practices and procedures, thus providing the best possible care for service members and beneficiaries. 

How to Get Involved

  • Share innovative ideas in our email inbox
  • Support your colleagues in advancing their innovative ideas

Government Innovation

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Women in DHA create impact across the federal health community

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11/4/2019
Retired Navy Vice Adm. Raquel Bono, former director of the Defense Health Agency, accepts the Lifetime Achievement Award from FedHealthIT during their Leading for Impact in Federal IT & Consulting, Women in Leadership Conference in Arlington, Va. (DHA Photo by Hannah Wagner)

FedHealthIT recognized two DHA leaders, past and present, for their government service during a ceremony in Arlington, Va.

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Unleashing innovation to support field medics, corpsmen

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9/13/2019
A drone lifts off during the Hive Final Mile demonstration on Marine Corps Base Quantico, Virginia. Drones are one of the autonomous technologies that might soon be helping medics provide care for warfighters on distant battlefields. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Sgt. Jacqueline A. Clifford)

Imagine unmanned vehicles bringing medical supplies or blood products to support a field medic’s care of wounded soldiers, or even transporting a wounded warfighter to safety. Researchers at the Army’s Telemedicine and Advanced Technology Research Center, or TATRC, are collaborating with the Services, academia and private industry to make such scenarios a reality.

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Zapping mosquitoes from the inside out

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7/29/2019
While chemical mosquito population control measures have been used with some degree of success, they are toxic to other insect populations and to the health of humans. A different angle of defense has emerged, which is genetic modification of the mosquito itself, making it transgenic. Transgenic mosquitoes are unable to transmit a pathogen, such as malaria, due to their altered genetic makeup. (DoD photo)

Mosquitoes aren’t just annoying at summer barbecues. In many parts of the world, they carry pathogens for Zika, dengue, yellow fever and malaria, the most devastating of mosquito-borne diseases. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 440,000 people died in sub-Saharan Africa in 2016 from malaria, contracted from the bite of an infected female Anopheles mosquito. Protecting U.S. military personnel who continue to serve in this part of world is critical.

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Mosquito-Borne Illnesses | Zika Virus | Preventing Mosquito-Borne Illnesses | Preventive Health | Innovation | Medical Research and Development | Deployment Health

Stop the Bleed: A battlefield innovation on civilian soil

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7/19/2019
USU's Dr. Craig Goolsby (center) observes as high school students at a conference in Orlando, Florida, practice using a tourniquet after watching a web-based tutorial. Goolsby is researching effective teaching methods as part of a grant to develop a trauma first-aid course for students that incorporates elements of Stop the Bleed. (USU photo by Sarah Marshall)

Program teaches public how to respond to bleeding emergencies

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Military Health System, industry allies work together to improve health care technology

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1/29/2019
Air Force Maj. Gen. Lee Payne, assistant director for combat support at Defense Health Agency, dual-hatted as the Defense Health Agency assistant director for Combat Support and MHS EHR functional champion, and Air Force Col. Thomas Cantilina, chief health informatics officer and EHR deputy functional champion at the DHA, visit the Tiger Institute Jan. 17. (Courtesy photo by University of Missouri Health Care)

Air Force Maj. Gen. Lee Payne visits University of Missouri’s Tiger Institute for Health Innovation

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Gaining new perspective through vision-correcting surgery

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1/29/2019
The Warfighter Refractive Eye Surgery Program, available to active duty service members, provides an opportunity to correct vision with ease thanks to advancing technology. (Department of Defense photo by Reese Brown)

Once deemed a disqualifying factor for service, refractive surgery is now available to active duty service members through a Department of Defense approved program

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Drug-monitoring innovations help providers help their patients

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8/6/2018
Two Military Health System innovations are helping to ensure best practices for patients with pain, and for patients who’ve been diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder. (U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Curt Beach)

Focus is on management of pain and PTSD

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Helping the healers through the power of mobile technology

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7/23/2018
The Provider Resilience app offers health care providers tools to guard against emotional occupational hazards, including compassion fatigue and burnout. An updated version of the app is expected to be released in the fall. (Courtesy photo)

App guards against emotional occupational hazards

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Soldiers test Army's newest transport telemedicine technology

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7/20/2018
Soldiers test MEDHUB during an exercise at Camp Atterbury, Indianapolis. (U.S. Army photo by Greg Pugh)

MEDHUB is really about life-saving situational awareness

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Air Force, NASA seek potential medical collaboration

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7/19/2018
David Loftus M.D., PH.D, medical officer and principal investigator space biometrics research branch, NASA Ames Research Center, meets with members of the 60th Medical Group at Travis Air Force Base, California. NASA and David Grant Medical Center are meeting for a potential collaboration between the two organizations to help in future space exploration. (U.S. Air Force photo by Louis Briscese)

NASA and the military share a lot of similar medical issues

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Navy Care app enables medical appointments from work, home

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7/13/2018
A Sailor uses the Navy Care app on her cell phone for a virtual health visit with a Naval Hospital Jacksonville provider. Navy Care enables patients to have a live video visit with a clinician on a smartphone, tablet, or computer. It’s private, secure, and free. (U.S. Navy photo by Petty Officer 1st Class Jacob Sippel)

The app delivers convenient care with the quality of a face-to-face visit

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Department of Defense Serum Repository

Infographic
8/3/2016
The Department of Defense Serum Repository is a longitudinal serum repository that serves as a central archive of sera drawn from Service members for medical surveillance purposes. As the world’s largest repository of its kind, the DoDSR has greatly contributed to a better understanding of the etiology of health conditions that would otherwise not be amenable to prospective study. More on the DODSR • The DoDSR stores more than 60 million serial serum specimens from more than 10 million active duty and reserve service members throughout their careers. • Since 1990, sera remaining after routine HIV-1 antibody testing and sera collected before and after major deployments have been forwarded to the DoDSR. • All serial serum specimens stored in the DoDSR are linkable to data in the Defense Medical Surveillance System (DMSS) – the central repository of military and medical surveillance data of U.S. service members. • At the repository, specimens are stored in precisely documented locations in walk-in freezers at -30 Celsius. • The DoDSR adds a powerful sero epidemiological capability to overall military health surveillance with linkage of data relevant to individual characteristics, exposure states, medical events, and specimens. • As a result, studies that used to require months to years, if feasible and affordable at all, can now be conducted in days to weeks by in-house epidemiologists. Over time, the serum repository will increase in its value as new etiologic hypotheses are developed, as technologies for detecting biological markers in sera are improved, and as medical events accrue among aging cohorts of contributors. Follow us on Twitter for more info: @AFHSBPAGE

The Department of Defense Serum Repository is a longitudinal serum repository that serves as a cental archive of sera drawn from Service members for medical surveillance purposes.

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2013 MHS Innovation Report

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3/3/2014

2013 Military Health System Innovation Report. This report contains information about MHS innovations in clinical care, research and development, and healthcare management. It also provides an overview of the MHS Innovation Program and information on the future of MHS innovation.

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Waiver of Restrictive Licensure and Privileging Procedures to Facilitate the Expansion of Telemedicine Services in the Military Health System 12-010

Policy

In order to facilitate the expansion of telemedicine services in the Military Health System, this memorandum waives selective provisions of Department of Defense 602S.13-R, "Clinical Quality Assurance in the Military Health System," June 11 , 2004. This waiver is conditioned on the specific provisions of this memorandum, and shall remain in effect, unless modified or revoked, until the cancellation and reissuance of DoD 602S.13-R, or the issuance of a Department of Defense Instruction for or including telemedicine.

Planning for the Reform of the Governance of the Military Health System

Policy
  • Identification #: N/A
  • Date: 3/2/2012
  • Type: Guidelines
  • Topics: Innovation
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