[Congressional Record Volume 152, Number 94 (Tuesday, July 18, 2006)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1440]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




     HONORING THE DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS ON RECEIVING THE 
    INNOVATIONS IN AMERICAN GOVERNMENT AWARD FROM THE ASH INSTITUTE

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                          HON. JAMES T. WALSH

                              of new york

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, July 18, 2006

  Mr. WALSH. Mr. Speaker, as Chairman of the Military Quality of Life 
and Veterans Affairs Subcommittee, I would like to congratulate the 
Department of Veterans Affairs on receiving the prestigious Innovations 
in American Government Award on Monday, July 10 from the Ash Institute 
in the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University, for 
their work in developing and implementing the Veterans Health 
Information Systems and Technology Architecture (VistA). The VA was one 
of seven winners who were selected from more than 1,000 entries, 
including 200 forward thinking federal programs, that implemented a 
creative approach to a significant problem and demonstrated that their 
solution worked. This $100,000 award will provide VA the opportunity to 
share VistA's success story as a role model to other government 
agencies and the private sector. I am proud of the Department of 
Veterans Affairs dedication in providing excellence in health care to 
our Nation's veterans.
  The VistA system includes an electronic health record that organizes 
and presents all relevant patient data to directly support clinical 
decision-making, and improves safety and efficiency while reducing 
costs and staff requirements. Patient files are readily available, 
easily searchable, and proactive in that they alert providers to vital 
patient information. The records system enables physicians to review a 
patient's medical history, diagnoses, medications, charts and X-rays at 
any of the 1,400 VA sites.
  At a time when Americans are wrestling with the high cost and 
complexity of medical services, VA officials point to VistA as the 
model for delivering on the key components of health care: 
accessibility, quality, and cost.
  Five years ago, VA won an Innovation Award for creating a health 
management system that worked to reduce medical mistakes. VistA is a 
system whereby any authorized caregiver in VA's network has immediate 
access to every veteran's complete electronic medical record.
  According to Dr. Jonathan B. Perlin, VA's Undersecretary for Health, 
the key to the success of the system was the full support of caregivers 
from the start. In fact, it was VA physicians who pushed for the 
system. It was developed in-house so that VA had complete control over 
the design and implementation.
  On the quality-of-care front, the system has reduced outpatient 
medication errors from the national rate of 5 percent to a fraction of 
1 percent. The system also enabled VA to manage vaccinations much more 
effectively, increasing the vaccination rate for pneumonia from 26 to 
92 percent in a decade.
  Also important, VistA has helped VA offer enrolled veterans better 
quality care than a decade ago. Their health status, as defined by 
patient functioning, has measurably improved. All of this has been 
provided a the same cost per patient as VA expended 10 years ago, while 
the rest of the country has seen costs nearly double.
  This was a proud day for the VA. Secretary Jim Nicholson said ``The 
VA is now at the forefront of America's health-care industry.''
  Once again, I would like to congratulate the veteran health providers 
at the Department of Veterans Affairs on receiving this well deserved 
award and thank them for their dedication in providing excellence in 
health care to our Nation's veterans.

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