Over the weekend, the Military Health System deployed the MHS GENESIS electronic health record (EHR) to 25 military medical treatment facility (MTFs) commands more sites in 12 states.

"MHS GENESIS allows us as medical professionals to have a single system providing faster access to healthcare information, enabling a more efficient and timely delivery of healthcare," explained Air Force Col. Mark Reynolds, 509th Medical Group commander at Whiteman Air Force Base, Missouri.

The Evans Army Community Hospital commander concurred "Our service members and families deserve the best care," said Army Col. Kevin Bass, commander of the Fort Carson, Colorado MTF. "MHS GENESIS will modernize military health care and enhance our ability to better serve our beneficiaries."

The DHA works in close coordination with the Program Executive Office, Defense Healthcare Management Systems and MTF staffs to deploy the new EHR across the MHS. The plan is to have the new system deployed across the enterprise by the end of 2023.

"This wave is particularly significant as it featured the highest number of MTF commands deployed simultaneously - 25," explained Holly Joers, acting program executive officer, Defense Healthcare Management Systems (PEO DHMS). "Wave CARSON+ involved facilities across 12 states, and places us at approximately 30% completion."

These 25 MTF commands within Wave CARSON+ include:

• Fort Carson Army Base, Colorado
• Fort Riley Army Base, Kansas
• Fort Leavenworth Army Base, Kansas
• Fort Leonard Wood Army Base, Missouri
• U.S. Air Force Academy. Colorado
• FE Warren Air Force Base, Wyoming
• Buckley Air Force Base, Colorado
• Ellsworth Air Force Base, South Dakota
• Peterson Air Force Base, Colorado
• McConnell Air Force Base, Kansas
• Whiteman Air Force Base, Missouri
• Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, Arizona
• Fort Huachuca Army Base, Arizona
• Luke Air Force Base, Arizona
• Malmstrom Air Force Base, Montana
• Grand Forks Air Force Base, North Dakota
• Minot Air Force Base, North Dakota
• Cannon Air Force Base, New Mexico
• Offutt Air Force Base, Nebraska
• Kirtland Air Force Base, New Mexico
• Hill Air Force Base, Utah
• Brooke Army Medical Center, Texas
• Fort Irwin Army Base, California*
• 1st Dental Battalion, California*
• Camp Pendleton, California*

(* denotes subordinate sites to larger parent sites in other waves)

As is the case with any new technology adoption, it will take time for clinic staff at each MTF command to learn how to efficiently navigate the new system. This may cause a temporary increase in routine wait times and a temporary reduction in available daily appointments. With each successive deployment, sites have been seeing faster returns to normal operations.

"The goal for MHS GENESIS is to consolidate health information into single platform and provide a continuum of care from point of injury to definitive treatment at any military treatment facility worldwide," added Army Col. Garrick Cramer, Commander Munson Army Health Center at Fort. Leavenworth in Kansas. "MHS GENESIS will greatly increase efficiencies for both beneficiaries and healthcare professionals through a DOD-wide, unified system that will also continue into the Veterans Affairs medical care system."

With the addition of the U.S. Coast Guard and the VA, this new EHR system has now been established as a federal program spanning three different departments - Defense, Veterans Affairs and Homeland Security.

"I'm very pleased with the hard work that each hospital and clinic has made leading up to our MHS GENESIS Wave CARSON+ Go-Live," stated Army Maj. Gen. George Appenzeller, MHS EHR functional champion.

"Our success in transitioning to MHS GENESIS is only because of the time and effort that users of the system have put into understanding and improving this new electronic health record system and the benefits it brings to our patients, our staff and the Military Health System," Appenzeller added. "As our deployment teams wrap up activities and Wave CARSON+, I'm excited to see how we can continue building off our lessons learned to continue making future improvements to our deployment strategy."

This fall, Wave TRIPLER in Hawaii will go live.