Jan. 25, 2011 Airman named Air Force Male Athlete of the Year; sets sight to 2012 Olympic Games Captain James Bales, 21st Force Support Squadron orthopedic surgeon currently on staff at the U.S. Air Force Academy Hospital, has been named U.S. Air Force Male Athlete of the Year for 2010. He received the award at the annual Air Force Sports Directors Conference in San Diego in December. Captain
Jan. 25, 2011 TRICARE officials improve online communication, access Additions to the TRICARE military health plan's website are giving beneficiaries easier access to their personal health data, more convenient appointment scheduling and better communication with their health care providers, the top TRICARE official reported.TRICARE Online, the military health
Jan. 25, 2011 'Virtual world' helps with post-traumatic stress Defense Department officials are using virtual-world interactivity to educate and help warfighters and others who are reluctant to seek more direct care to deal with post-traumatic stress, said an official at the National Center for Telehealth and Technology, also known as "T2."During a recent
Jan. 25, 2011 No Airman left behind: Pursued by anxiety A young man lifts weights in a crowded gym. All of a sudden, a lion appears in the doorway, locks eyes with the young man and bursts into full pursuit. That surge of adrenaline and panic is what one Airman here felt while performing normal everyday tasks."I'm going through this feeling of a lion
Jan. 25, 2011 VA officials developing innovative patient-centered model of care for veterans Department of Veterans Affairs officials are creating a new office to develop personal, patient-centered models of care for veterans who receive health care services at VA's more than 1,000 points of care across the nation."VA has become one of the nation's leaders in quality health care and is
Jan. 25, 2011 386th EMDG Airmen boast garden oasis In the vast desert, it's hard to believe for many that anything can grow besides tumbleweeds. One provider with the 386th Expeditionary Medical Group has shown that with effort, determination and a little ingenuity, anything can grow anywhere. Lt. Col. Reynold D'Lima, along with other members of the
Jan. 20, 2011 Critical care air transport team brings ICU to battlefield He walks into the Kandahar Air Hospital with his medical bags in tow. Minus a few dusty footprints at the doorway from the outside environment, it resembles any other hospital complete with a clean, sterile smell -- a scent absent anywhere else on the airfield in Afghanistan which is noted for its
Jan. 20, 2011 TRICARE officials announce Young Adult program The Department of Defense announced Jan. 13 its introduction of the premium-based TRICARE Young Adult Program which extends medical coverage to eligible military family members to age 26. Expected to be in place later this spring, TYAP implements the National Defense Authorization Act of fiscal
Jan. 20, 2011 386th EMDG Airmen boast garden oasis In the vast desert, it's hard to believe for many that anything can grow besides tumbleweeds. One provider with the 386th Expeditionary Medical Group has shown that with effort, determination and a little ingenuity, anything can grow anywhere. Lt. Col. Reynold D'Lima, along with other members of the
Jan. 20, 2011 Deployed dentists have four-legged patients Capt. Matt Synder was only in country for three days when he learned his Saturday morning patient was a military member of another species -- the canine variety. Working hand-in-hand with Army Capt. Daniel Skirvin, the veterinarian deployed here, the members of the 386th Expeditionary Medical Group
Jan. 20, 2011 'Medical home' concept improves care, controls costs Wouldn't it be fantastic to get the old-fashioned kind of health care, in which the doctor knew you and your family and kept track of your medical condition, but with the additional convenience and access to health care information that modern technology provides?That's exactly what the TRICARE
Jan. 20, 2011 Service Delivery Assessment vital to patient care Patient feedback through the service delivery assessment, a centralized telephone survey program, provides Air Force clinics with direct, rapid and relevant feedback vital to national security, Air Force Medical Service officials said."Improving the health of Airmen and their families is our mission
Jan. 20, 2011 Survey will assess Air Force community well-being Invitations to take the 2011 Air Force Community Assessment will be sent out Jan. 25. The assessment is designed to assist chaplains and people working in installation-level Airman and family readiness centers, family advocacy programs, health and wellness centers, mental health clinics and child
Jan. 20, 2011 Blood testing equipment upgraded The 81st Medical Group Hospital laboratory boasts new equipment that improves its ability to respond to physician requests for blood tests. The new system, the cobas® 6000 analyzer series manufactured by Roche Diagnostics, was formally unveiled Dec. 20. The equipment analyzes blood samples for
Jan. 12, 2011 Dr. Jonathan Woodson becomes DOD's senior health official Dr. Jonathan Woodson took the oath of office today to become the next Assistant Secretary of Defense for Health Affairs and Director, TRICARE Management Activity. Dr. Woodson was nominated by President Obama in April 2010 and recently confirmed by the United States Senate.As Assistant Secretary, Dr.
Jan. 11, 2011 Health plan to remain free for troops, officials emphasize Though Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates seeks modest premium increases for working-age military retirees who use the TRICARE Prime health plan, the benefit will remain free to service members, defense officials emphasized Jan. 7.Secretary Gates unveiled sweeping, cost-cutting initiatives Jan. 6,
Jan. 11, 2011 Health plan officials work to improve efficiency, care As Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates presses for a modest increase in health plan premiums for working-age military retirees to help offset rising health care costs, the head of the TRICARE Management Activity reported progress already made in improving efficiencies as well as the quality of health
Jan. 11, 2011 Doctors Use Acupuncture as Newest Battlefield Tool D. Nichols, a retired Navy flight officer and cryptologist, limped into the Air Force Acupuncture Center at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland early yesterday morning, leaning heavily on a cane.A couple of hours later, moving easily without the cane and with the ends of tiny gold needles glittering in
Jan. 11, 2011 Hospital installs new internal imaging cameras The 81st Medical Group has purchased and installed two new nuclear medicine imaging cameras.Valued at nearly $2.1 million, the cameras place Keesler among the leaders in nuclear medicine imaging technology and provide improved diagnostic testing capability for nearly 45,000 authorized
Jan. 11, 2011 Radiologists see from the inside out When doctors need to look inside a patient, they call on a team of radiological professionals to reveal the answers that lie beneath.The eight-person 35th Surgical Operations Squadron diagnostic imaging team, commonly known as radiology, at Misawa Air Base performs an average of 500 image-gathering