CIO Report
AHLTA Goes Dental
Charles M. Campbell
Military Health System
Chief Information Officer
The Military Health System is leading the charge with the groundbreaking implementation of AHLTA-Dental. This integrated medical and dental electronic health record represents a major milestone in health care information sharing. For the first time in the Military Health System, dental providers will have fully electronic dental charting tools complemented by point-of-care access to complete medical records, test results and images.
Part of AHLTA, the military’s electronic health record, AHLTA-Dental consolidates Tri-Service Dental Records into a single electronic resource, creating worldwide online access to a servicemember’s integrated medical and dental record. With the addition of a dental functionality to AHLTA, both providers and patients win. The dental community has immediate electronic access to patient records, eliminating the need to pull and review often incomplete physical records. Lengthy forms become a thing of the past for the patients and their families, eliminating the need to fill out historical medical information at different clinics. This saves time, energy and cost.
The patients’ medical and dental providers both have online access to the latest, realtime medical and dental information, enabling informed clinical decision-making. Access to consolidated information allows for smarter and safer treatment decisions where medical and dental conditions influence each other (e.g., diabetes, heart conditions, cancer). This next generation of AHLTA should eliminate lost dental records and provide record availability regardless of the servicemembers’ status or geographic location.
Using wellness reminders, AHLTA creates opportunities for the dental providers to reinforce health promotion and disease prevention activities previously met by the medical community alone. AHLTA-Dental improves the sharing of patient information, allowing health care providers easy access to both medical and dental patient information.
Since the deployment of AHLTA-Dental began in March, over 612 personnel at 23 dental clinics have completed training. Most recently, it was successfully deployed at the Bolling Air Force Base Dental Clinic in Washington, D.C. Bolling AFB is the first clinic in the National Capital Region to have switched to the fully electronic record-keeping system. The rollout of AHLTA to 377 dental clinics is scheduled to be complete by the anticipated target date of 2010, granting access to over 11,000 dental personnel.
The deployment operations team of the Military Health System Office of the Chief Information Officer’s Defense Health Information Management System Program works closely with service representatives and site project teams to ensure a successful launch and implementation at each military treatment facility. Our mission is to provide optimal health services in support of our nation’s military mission—anytime, anywhere. The Military Health System views the addition of a dental component to the electronic health record as a positive step toward total care of our servicemembers.
Electronic access to a patients’ complete medical history minimizes human error and supports a more accurate and complete diagnosis and treatment. “One patient, one record” is the philosophy that captures the importance of real-time access to secure, legible patient records to enhance quality of care. Visit www.health.mil to learn more about the Military Health System or the CIO’s efforts. ♦
For more information, contact Karen Roberts, director of MHS CIO communications, at (703) 681-8836.