Nicci Eisenhauer has learnt from US veterans on the health experiences coming back to civilian life. She has worked as a researcher and biomedical communicator leading her to establish AIMS, American Initiatives for Military Support in 2011.
In an informal talk with Global Health Talks host Mike Lesner, himself a former US Marine, Nicci talks on the purpose of AIMS being an information-sharing network for all those who serve and support the military and veteran community.
Access to services is important consideration for Veteran wellbeing and AIMS develops a user-friendly membership infrastructure where members can network; research and information can be curated and archived; Service members, Veterans, Families, and caregivers can easily access services.
Another of the important roles that AIMS serves is to enhance partnership with VA and government services to increase efficiency and fill gaps.
Nicci refers to this as fostering Medical Diplomacy between military medical systems. The disparity between systems resulted in the Defence Health Agency being formed in 2015.
The Defense Health Agency (DHA) is a joint, integrated Combat Support Agency that enables the Army, Navy, and Air Force medical services to provide a medically ready force and ready medical force to Combatant Commands in both peacetime and wartime. The DHA supports the delivery of integrated, affordable, and high quality health services to Military Health System (MHS) beneficiaries and is responsible for driving greater integration of clinical and business processes across the MHS.
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Global effort to reduce postoperative infection risk
Infection rates following surgical procedure vary across countries, however the causes and the ranges of variation are not well understood.
The causes of the infections are not as high as would be assumed on the surgical procedure, but co-morbidity and lifestyle choices including alcohol consumption may exacerbate risk. As Dr Edmiston states, there are a myriad of causes, and funding is limited in many countries. However there are some solutions, where goals, performance tracking against the goals and better communication is needed.
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Closing gaps in emergency surgical care
Dr Lynette Scherer In conversation with Mike Lesner talks about trauma being the leading cause of death for under 40 year olds in the US, giving rise to the need to deliver trauma care earlier and more efficiently.
As a trauma surgeon and CEO of Surgical Affiliates Management Group, Inc (or known as SAMGI), Dr Scherer’s organisation addresses variations and gaps in emergency surgical care. The work has led to improvements in care, financial performance of hospitals and clinician satisfaction levels.
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New global network into Pulmonary Research
Pulmonary fibrosis is a lung disease that occurs when lung tissue becomes damaged and scarred. The debilitating and fatal disease ended the life of an Australian man 8 years ago.
His son led philanthropic efforts to establish the connection between 2 Australian organisations; Lung Foundation Australia and Centre for Research Excellence in Pulmonary Fibrosis and the US based, Three Lakes Foundation. The three organisations recently announced a collaboration to create a global network for PF research.
