The Department of Veterans Affairs Midwest Health Care Network will share its remote intensive care unit capabilities with the Air Force Medical Operations Agency.
Under the agreement, Air Force patients at five military treatment facilities will have access to the VA's teleICU physicians and critical care nurses based out of the centralized support center in Minneapolis. The teleICU enables physicians to prescribe medications, order procedures and make diagnoses through live electronic monitoring, remote consultations and audio and video feeds.
The teleICU agreement — which includes Air Force patients in Las Vegas; Hampton, Virginia; Biloxi, Mississippi; Dayton, Ohio; and Anchorage, Alaska — is part of the 2015 DOD-VA Health Care Sharing Incentive Fund. The fund aims to increase healthcare resource sharing between the two organizations.
"This cooperation between the Air Force and VA reflects our shared commitment to caring for those who serve in our nation's military, both during their service and beyond," said Poonam Alaigh, MD, acting under secretary for health of the VA.