The Army has issued a request for information, seeking “strategic thought leadership” on how the departments of Defense and Veterans Affairs can develop an e-health record system for inpatient care in both departments.
The notice, posted on the FedBizOpps site, says the RFI is not intended to result in a request for proposals. Instead, it aims to solicit industry’s ideas on the project, which could result in one of the world’s largest health records systems.
Besides the overall feasibility of a joint acquisition, some of the areas covered in the notice include:
Whether the department should build a new system, use an existing commercial system, expand their current EHR systems (known as VistA and AHLTA) or adopt a hybrid strategy.
How the proposed solution might interoperate with other systems, including those outside both departments.
How long it would take to achieve initial deployment and full deployment.
What kind of governance would best serve the project.
Whether the project should comply with federal and industry standards.
The notice states that Booz Allen Hamilton and Gartner are helping the government with the analyses that will lead to a project strategy.
“Independently both the VA and the DOD operate two of the largest health care systems in the world,” it states. “When considering an inpatient EHR solution for both the DOD and the VA the magnitude and complexity of the system is magnified. In developing a response to this RFI, each respondent must consider the volume and complexity of these organizations. “
Responses to the RFI, limited to 30 pages, are due Dec. 13. But vendors are advised not to simply forward their marketing brochures to the Army Medical Research Acquisition Activity. “The government does not desire to receive individual corporate marketing materials or slick sheets,” the notice states. “The government will not review marketing materials and slick sheets.”
A report on the project's feasibility is expected in May.
From the battlefield to the home front: Managing medical data
Government Health IT presents Col. Claude Hines Jr., program manager for the Defense Health Information Management System, in this recent InSight eSeminar. Col. Hines discusses the health information technology and tactical challenges faced by the military medical community in Iraq, Afghanistan and other areas of conflict. In doing so, he describes the current information technology solutions for transferring clinical data between battlefield care givers to health care personnel at military treatment facilities worldwide.
