Afghan theater medics push to expand health IT access
By Peter Buxbaum
Tuesday, December 29, 2009
Key
members of a U.S. military medical task force in Afghanistan are pushing for
greater accessibility to electronic health records and telemedicine
capabilities in theater.
Sgt. Timothy Kusik, the noncommissioned officer in charge
for Task Force Medical East in Bagram, Afghanistan, and his team are working to
place MC4 laptops at the bedside in treatment rooms and are evaluating
installation of the Army's Joint Telemedicine Network (JTMN) at remote
locations to improve data access and to explore video teleconference
capabilities.
MC4, the
Army's Medical Communications for Combat Casualty Care organization, provides
the U.S. military with AHLTA-Theater, the electronic health record used in
conflict zones.
"We’re
working to have MC4 systems at the bedside in treatment rooms," said
Kusik. "Currently, nurses write notes at the bedside and enter the
information when they get back to the nurse’s station."
Many
reservists, including Kusik, who works as an X-ray technician, are employed in
civilian hospitals with terminals in patient care rooms when they are not on
active duty. "They want the same capability here," said Kusik.
"We’re working to improve the infrastructure to make this possible."
Kusik is
also pushing JTMN to forward operating bases to allow better accessibility to
patient information in remote locations which often lack network connectivity
as well as to provide telemedicine capabilities.
MC4
systems include a feature which allows patient data to be stored in areas which
lack connectivity and then uploaded once a network connection has been
established. JTMN could provide treatment centers access to MC4 data.
Kusik is
also examining the use of JTMN for video teleconferencing and
telemedicine. "This could be
a way for specialists located at larger encampments, such as Bagram, to connect
with soldiers downrange that need counseling with professionals," said
Kusik. Video teleconferencing and telemedicine," he noted, "are just
starting to take hold in theater."
