CIO Report
Written by Charles M. Campbell
Computer/Electronic Accommodations Program
Charles M. Campbell
Military Health System
Chief Information Officer
America has given the leaders of the Military Health System a humbling responsibility: to care for our country’s fighting forces, their families and those who have served before us—more than 9.2 million people in all. Our health care team has performed exceptionally. We have achieved unprecedented outcomes from the foundation of a vibrant military medical culture—one based on innovation, service to others and an unrelenting persistence to achieve excellence.
One division of the MHS consistently makes an extraordinary effort to raise the quality of health care in a unique way. The Computer/ Electronic Accommodations Program (CAP) provides free assistive technologies and services to federal employees with disabilities, wounded servicemembers, federal managers, supervisors and information technology professionals, increasing employment opportunities and access to the IT environment in the United States and abroad. CAP actively supports its mission of “providing real solutions for real needs” by increasing access to information and working to remove barriers to employment opportunities by eliminating the costs of assistive technology and accommodation solutions. “CAP is helping to make the federal government the model employer for people with disabilities,” said Dinah Cohen, CAP director.
Since its inception in 1990 by the under secretary of defense for personnel and readiness, CAP, a TRICARE Management Activity program, has filled over 71,000 requests for accommodations for federal employees and wounded servicemembers with visual, hearing, manual dexterity, communication and cognitive disabilities, including traumatic brain injuries. In addition to serving military departments and defense agencies, CAP partners with 65 other federal agencies, including the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, to actively support wounded servicemembers during their recovery and rehabilitation. In fiscal year 2008, CAP provided over 4,500 accommodations to servicemembers and military treatment facilities throughout the nation, including Walter Reed and Brooke Army medical centers. CAP also partnered with several organizations to support disabled veteran re-employment efforts and attended Hiring Heroes career fairs.
CAP trains organizations to promote understanding of their mission and services in support of federal goals to increase employment opportunities for people with disabilities. This training provides instruction on how to integrate disability issues into the president’s management agenda and how to create and manage essential elements of disability employment programs, including recruitment, placement, promotion and retention of people with disabilities.
Much of CAP’s success lies in its ability to provide reasonable accommodations to employees quickly and easily, increasing employment and retention of employees with disabilities. CAP services and staff help the severely wounded rejoin the work force and regain self-esteem as they build a career. Cap provides a range of support services to the military family, all with compassion and explicitly acknowledging the dignity of the servicemember and his or her family.
The Computer/Electronic Accommodations Program has won numerous awards for its work, including the Presidential Award for Management Excellence—the President’s Quality Award for 2008—in the category of expanded electronic government. The award recognizes federal agencies that best achieve the objectives of the president’s management agenda. The President’s Quality Award is the highest award given to executive branch agencies for management excellence.
Programs like this represent exactly why we are here: to continuously care for our servicemembers to our very best ability. The work of the MHS is sacred. Caring for America’s heroes is not a motto—it is what we do. Our commitment is to provide the strategy, policy and resources to achieve excellence. We are indebted to the sacrifice of our servicemembers and are honored to serve them. ♦
For more information on CAP, please visit www.tricare.mil/. For more information, contact Karen Roberts, director, MHS OCIO communications at (703) 681-8836.