The Federal EHR: Real stories, real impact

Although recent deployments of the Federal Electronic Health Record (EHR) in Michigan and southern Ohio have been successful, that success has been built on listening to and collaborating with the initial sites that deployed the system. Deployments started in 2020 and, since then, have stopped, restarted, paused, reset, restarted again and now accelerated. For early adopters of the system, it has been… interesting.

So, what do these early adopters think now?

“The Federal EHR: Real Stories | Real Impact” series explores how the Federal EHR has impacted the daily work of clinicians and staff at the Mann-Grandstaff VA Medical Center (VAMC) in Spokane, Washington, the first site to go live:

Episode 1: Improved High Quality of Care – Medical practitioners discuss how the system is helping them better care for their patients.

Episode 2: What Clinicians and Front-line Staff Like about the Federal EHR – Clinicians and front-line staff share what they like about the system and how it helps them serve Veterans.

Episode 3: Advice for Future Sites – Practitioners share their advice on what worked for them during go-live.

Mann-Grandstaff VAMC deployed an early version of the system that lacked the 13,000 upgrades integrated into today’s Federal EHR. In the video series, clinicians and staff share their reflections on the system—then and now.

Sunil Wadhwani, M.S., PharmD, recalls working in the system as one of the first VA end users. “The product has come a long way over the last five and a half years,” said Wadhwani. “As one of the first users of the product, I can say we are in a much safer state.”

Another early adopter, Heidi Ferre, D.D.S., chief, dental service, emphasizes the usefulness of the Federal EHR for collaborative care and communication across the facility. She is looking forward to more sites coming on board to help with a holistic patient record. “Our Veterans in Spokane travel… quite frequently,” said Ferre. “To be able to see all records within an integrated system will help not only Veterans, but our staff.”

The Federal EHR is now active at 14 VA medical centers and 75 VA clinics serving more than 515,000 Veterans. We’ve come a long way, thanks to new leadership and a new approach, but we are just getting started. Next up is Indiana, where the Federal EHR will go live in August at Fort Wayne VAMC, Marion VAMC, and Richard L. Roudebush Veterans’ Administration Medical Center.

For inspiration, guidance and some history, watch “The Federal EHR: Real Stories | Real Impact” and learn how the Federal EHR is improving the quality of care for Veterans and easing workflows for providers.