{"id":36975,"date":"2025-04-23T07:00:32","date_gmt":"2025-04-23T07:00:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/updates-www.mccdn.io\/vitals\/?p=36975"},"modified":"2025-04-23T16:39:00","modified_gmt":"2025-04-23T16:39:00","slug":"raising-the-bar-for-veteran-care","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/updates-www.mccdn.io\/vitals\/raising-the-bar-for-veteran-care\/","title":{"rendered":"Raising the bar for veteran care","gt_translate_keys":[{"key":"rendered","format":"text"}]},"content":{"rendered":"

Approximately 502,000 veterans live in Washington state, with most residing in communities MultiCare serves. Through a new collaboration with the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) and Epic, our electronic medical record platform, MultiCare is on a mission to improve the experiences and health outcomes of our veteran population.<\/p>\n

Very few veterans receive care exclusively through the VA \u2014 most seek some health care services from civilian providers in the community, such as MultiCare. An Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality study<\/a> found that 55 percent of veterans had only<\/strong> non-VA care visits over a 12-month period.<\/p>\n

Many veterans are also dual-managed, typically a situation where a VA primary care provider refers a patient to a civilian provider for specialty care.<\/p>\n

While the American Medical Association, American Academy of Nursing and other organizations recommend that doctors and other health care providers ask about a patients\u2019 military background, it isn\u2019t always common practice in civilian care settings.<\/p>\n

\u201cKnowing a patient has served in the military informs the way care is delivered,\u201d says Matthew McCay, manager of the Veteran Advocacy Program at MultiCare Yakima Memorial Hospital. \u201cResearch shows that veterans as a population have trends in health care<\/a>. They may be more likely to have certain diseases and injuries or experience exposure to ionizing radiation or certain chemicals like Agent Orange.\u201d<\/p>\n

In fact, one study found that the demands of service have increased to such an extent in recent years that veterans may be at even greater risk for experiencing poorer health outcomes<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Improving outcomes through data sharing<\/strong><\/h2>\n

In 2024, MultiCare took an important step in improving veteran care by signing the Veteran Interoperability Pledge<\/a>. Sponsored by the VA, the pledge creates a framework that supports the secure exchange of data between the VA and partner health systems in the community.<\/p>\n

The seamless sharing of information better positions MultiCare to:<\/p>\n