Coast Guard launches MHS GENESIS electronic health records system at four medical facility pilot sites

News Release

U.S. Coast Guard Headquarters Contact: Headquarters Public Affairs Office: (202) 372-4630 mediarelations@uscg.mil Headquarters online newsroom

Coast Guard launches MHS GENESIS electronic health records system at four medical facility pilot sites

WASHINGTON— On Saturday, the Coast Guard deployed the Military Health System (MHS) GENESIS electronic health records (EHR) system to four Coast Guard medical facility pilot sites, the first step towards service-wide adoption of an integrated EHR system. Medical facilities at Coast Guard Training Center Petaluma, Base Alameda, Air Station Sacramento, and Maritime Safety and Security Team 91105 in San Francisco were chosen as pilot sites because they collectively represent the full range of Coast Guard medical facility capabilities.

“MHS GENESIS will be a technological leap forward for us. It will be a game-changer for our patients and staff as we transform the delivery of health care to increase readiness and quality across our enterprise,” said Rear Adm. Dana Thomas, Director of Health, Safety and Work-Life for the U.S. Coast Guard.

MHS GENESIS will replace the Coast Guard’s primarily paper-based health records system. EHR capability will make patient record retrieval easier and faster, establish a platform for an enterprise health analytics capability, reduce administrative errors, and allow electronic information exchange with the Department of Defense, the Department of Veterans Affairs, and community and civilian providers. Currently in use within the Department of Defense, MHS GENESIS also demonstrates increased patient charting efficiency and greater effectiveness of patient safety measures used to avoid medication-related incidents. The Coast Guard’s EHR system, once fully implemented, will service all 168 Coast Guard medical facilities ashore and afloat.

During the pilot site phase, the Coast Guard will build experience and familiarity with MHS GENESIS as it prepares to deploy the system to the service in two waves, “Pacific” and “Atlantic”. In the Pacific Wave, MHS GENESIS will deploy to 32 Coast Guard Pacific Area shore medical facilities. In 2021, following the Pacific Wave, the Atlantic Wave will deploy MHS GENESIS to Coast Guard Atlantic Area shore medical facilities and, combined with the Pacific wave, will establish MHS GENESIS as the core EHR solution for the Coast Guard. Both waves and associated deployment support activities are collectively known as “Segment A” of the Coast Guard electronic health records acquisition program. When Segment A is completed in 2022, 43 ashore clinics and 67 ashore sick bays will be using MHS GENESIS for EHR management.

Segment B will focus on continued data digitization and developing centralized x-ray services. These activities will ensure data from paper health records are properly migrated to a digital format in MHS GENESIS and that medical and dental x-ray devices are configured to operate with the new EHR system. Segment B is scheduled for completion in 2024.

Segment C, which the Coast Guard will implement in alignment with the Department of Defense, will extend EHR capability to the afloat medical facilities serving the Coast Guard’s cutter fleet. The schedule for Segment C is in development.

For more questions regarding the MHS GENESIS electronic health records system, email MediaRelations@uscg.mil.

-USCG-