FORT CAMPBELL, KY – Dwight D. Eisenhower Army Medical Center and Blanchfield Army Community Hospital launched the Army’s first pilot Telehealth primary care services within BACH’s Emergency Center Feb. 2.

The Telehealth pilot between these two health facilities incorporates a process to redirect non-emergency patients from the BACH emergency center to a primary care provider at DEAMC using the Telehealth platform, which is a hub for secure integrated telemedicine encounters. The mobile medical system uses video conferencing and software to capture, store and forward live medical images securely between health care providers in separate locations.

The Vice Chief of Staff of the Army and Army Deputy Surgeon General directed the pilot phase launch to prove virtual patient-centered medical home encounters can be used to reduce patient wait times in emergency departments.
In addition, the objective is to determine if the concept of Telehealth primary care can be used in support of forward deployed Forces.

In December, the Regional Health Command – Atlantic (Provisional) partnered with Blanchfield Army Community Hospital and Dwight D. Eisenhower Army Medical Center to conduct a proof of concept pilot to determine the feasibility of providing primary care services by using Telehealth technology.

The successful completion of this pilot will provide the Army Medical Command and the RHC-A(P) with a new approach to primary care that has several Dependable, Achievable, Replicable Telehealth (DART) goals which include:
. Improving readiness by implementing new technologies and patient care delivery models to assist commands in achieving their medical readiness goals in both a garrison and deployed environment.
. Allow RHC-A (P) Commands to use providers among Health Readiness Platforms (HRPs) to support surges and unforeseen service requirements with a dependable infrastructure of network technology and communications;
. Provide cost-effective, comprehensive, efficient, and timely access to quality outpatient Telehealth care regardless of the patient location.

During the first two days of Telehealth pilot offered between BACH and DEAMC, the team saw seven patients in the Telehealth clinic.

The Telehealth service will continue to operate from 3 to 11 p.m. Sunday through Thursdays for the next six months.