Report on the 2016 Inaugural Military and Civilian Health Care Provider Forum, Lakewood, WA

On Wednesday, October 26, I attended the 2016 Inaugural Military and Civilian Health Care Provider Forum at the Tacoma Golf & Country Club in Lakewood, Washington (very close to the city of Tacoma, as well as to Joint Base Lewis–McChord).

The event was intended to bring together individuals and organizations affiliated or interested in working with the military so tht we could learn from one another regarding services delivery, systems navigation and quality of care practices.

I was there representing the Veterans Therapeutic Massage Center (VTMC), Pacific Northwest College of Allied Health Sciences (PNCAHS), and the Project for Open Education in Massage (POEM). I was the only representative of the massage profession who attended the event.

The forum was intended to focus on joint collaboration on these mutually-beneficial objectives:

• Enhancing collaboration between military & civilian health providers
• Better understand services delivery
• Learn more about systems navigation
• Gain insight on quality of care practices
• Initiate an action plan on joint objectives 

A number of presenters, military and civilian, laid out current programs, and what they would like to see more of.

There are many places where massage therapy could meaningfully fit in for the benefit of active-duty troops, their families and dependents, and veterans..

In the breakout session, we divided up into groups that brainstormed on one of several questions:

1.  How do we encourage more civilian healthcare providers to schedule appointments for troops, their dependents, and veterans?
2. How can we communicate/coordinate better in order to provide seamless care between settings for active-duty troops, their dependents, and veterans?
3. How can civilian and military providers keep learning from and supporting each other?

Action items for POEM, PNCAHS, and VTMC from this meeting include the development of CE courses for beta testers in December, and attending the next meeting of the South Sound Military & Communities Partnership Health Care Working Group via teleconference. Report on those action items to follow as they are completed.