Although Mr. Black notes that Allscripts welcomes the VA’s modernization efforts, he adds that the agency must look beyond the EHR and focus on expanded care coordination efforts. The VA should also work to ensure veterans and their families are aware of other medical information and sources available to them outside of the VA, he writes.
Mr. Black recommends the VA prioritize interoperability with the Department of Defense and other private providers, care management for at-risk veterans and two-way digital engagement.
“The VA is headed in the right direction; it is striving for an actionable, community-aware health solution. Its new EHR will be an important first step, but the capabilities that will magnify the power of that new EHR should also be fast-tracked, in parallel to the EHR, to all caring for our nation’s Veterans on existing platforms,” Mr. Black writes. “We owe it to our Veterans to speed the transformation of the care process.”
Editor’s note: This article was updated Nov. 1, 2017, at 12:11 p.m. to clarify Mr. Black’s comments on the VA’s EHR contract.
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