FORT BENNING, Ga. (WRBL)— Martin Army Community Hospital is set to implement a new electronic health database system from the Department of Defense in less than two weeks.

The database termed MHS Genesis will integrate inpatient and outpatient medical records, making them available in a single system to patients 24/7 from anywhere in the world starting June 11, 2022.

Currently at Martin Army Hospital, medical records, patient portals, and other information is spread across several separate platforms. Once the rollout process is complete, patients will be able to go to MHS Genesis to access records, lab results, renew prescriptions, schedule appointments, and communicate directly with their health care provider.

Martin Army’s Hospital Commander, Col. Kevin Kelly says the new database will enhance their ability to deliver high quality and safe healthcare to their 50,000 patients within the Columbus area.

“This system will, with that enhanced technology, give our doctors and nurses more information to make decisions at the bedside. And then we’ll also give leaders more collective information that helps us make decisions to improve the quality of care that we provide patients,” Col. Kelly says.

Martin Army Hospital has been training to switch over to the new database for more than a year, and although it will expedite the healthcare process in the long run, Col. Kelly says there will be a transitional period.

“We want to our patients to know that we are committed to delivering high quality health care. I have been committed to that and will continue to be committed to that. The system is a new system for our staff. So in the in the course of that change, we want to make sure that we get things right and it will slow us down a little bit initially. So we can expect some decreased availability of appointments and some delays in some of our services, but that’s just so that we get it right. For example, we do 3,000 prescriptions per day here at Martin Army, and we want to make sure that every prescription is done correctly in the new system with the right patient, the right dose, the right medication,” Col. Kelly says.

This database will be available for active military and beneficiaries enrolled at Martin Army. In the future, the Department of Defense will utilize this same system with the Veterans Administration.

“Right now MHS Genesis that will be rolled out at Martin is for the beneficiaries enrolled in our facility. The Department of Defense will use the same system as the Veterans Administration. In the future once it is fully and rolled out, but it’s not quite there yet,” Col. Kelly says at this point the Department of Defense is about 50% complete with the rollout of MHS Genesis across military treatment facilities internationally and estimates they will be done within the next year.

Col. Kelly also says the long term vision for this program is to provide 24/7 access to a patient’s medical records including on-the-go access for first responders in emergency situations. 

“Once the system is fully employed, we expect the information to be available and to be documented from the point of injury all the way back to the treatment facility, including the en-route care through EMS. That won’t be the initial state here at Fort Benning, we’ll first get it into the military treatment facilities. That is the long term vision for this system,” Col. Kelly adds. “From the battlefield to any military treatment facility, their health information will be available.”