Our strategy aligns the Military Health System with the rest of the Department of War and serves as a roadmap to the future of military health care.

Mission

To enable the DOW to provide medically ready and ready medical forces by improving the health of all those entrusted to our care.

Vision

To become the world’s role model of an integrated military system of health and readiness delivering technology-enabled, innovative, and service-focused care in support of our nation’s military mission – anytime, anywhere.

Pillars

The MHS strategy builds on three central and connected pillars to achieve our mission.

Medically Ready Force

A force composed of individuals with the strength and resilience to engage in sustained combat operations.

Ready Medical Force

Deployable operational and tactical medical forces that provide a joint network of integrated health support.

Health Care Delivery

A health delivery system is the people, systems, policies, and resources to promote physical health and well-being.

Guiding Principals

The MHS guiding principles build on the strength of the core values from the services and  the Defense Health Agency. These principles reflect who we are and drive us to press on in the face of great challenges.

Helping People Achieve Greatness

We work in teams with passion, respect, and loyalty to create tomorrow’s leaders.

Selfless and Courageous Service

We honor those who serve and commit to the health needs of our nation’s warfighters, military families, and all beneficiaries. We have the courage to do what’s right and go into harm’s way to save lives.

Caring, Healing, and Creating Health

We’re healers dedicated to our patients. We build trusting relationships to let our patients take control of their health. We’re compassionate and committed to reducing disease, easing suffering, and achieving peak health and wellness.

Strategic Goals

Our strategic goals describe how the MHS will become the world’s role model for a military health system. Each goal is supported by specific objectives outlining the DOW resources needed to reach the goal.

Take Care of Our People

Healthy, educated people take better care of people.

Invest In Our Workforce

• Provide uniformed and civilian health professionals with education, training, and skills.

Deploy Ready Reliable Care

• Improve safety and standardize processes that reduce errors in clinical and non-clinical areas.
• Encourage transparency and accountability while valuing everyone’s input, regardless of rank.

Empower Our Workforce

• Require safe, supportive environments.
• Encourage healthy behaviors with leadership engagement at all levels to promote wellness and reduce burnout.

Stabilize the MHS

Efficiently generate and sustain medically ready and ready medical forces.

Increase Capacity and Capability to Care for Complex Patients

• Reduce risks and meet demands for care from our patients.
• Position military medical personnel in coordination with the military departments.
• Improve civilian personnel hiring and retention.
• Keep clinical skills current.
• Thoughtfully invest in military medical hospitals and clinics and military dental clinics.

Improve Experience of Care

• Create greater access to primary and specialty care.
• Deliver patient-centered services.
• Recognize the unique needs of each person and their right to make informed choices to achieve health and wellness.

Attract Beneficiaries

• See more patients choosing military hospitals and clinics.
• Keep the promise our nation makes to care for our beneficiaries, operate well, and continue clinical experiences for the ready medical force.

Modernize the MHS

We must change health care delivery to keep up with rapid innovations and make effective use of our nation's resources.

Implement Digital Health

• Integrate technology to connect the clinic to the home and battlefield.
• Timely, accurate, and useful information for medical personnel.
• Digital tools to give patients more choices.

Prioritize Medical Research and Development

• Invest money to develop blood and blood products, pharmaceuticals, vaccines, biomedical equipment, etc.
• Discover new pathways of care to save future lives on the battlefield, restore the warfighter, and aid military responses to national emergencies.

Expand Biodefense Surveillance and Response Capabilities

• Prevent, protect against, respond to, and recover from biological threats.
• Strengthen the national medical readiness posture.
• Improve global health security.

Deliver Value-Based Care

• Use resources to deliver quality, safe outcomes that matter to patients.

Integrate MHS Capabilities

Resources must go to first responder care, en route care, theatre hospitalization, and definitive care.

Define Health Care Requirements

• Include more guidelines for Roles 1-4:
  • Role 1: Unit-level medical care.
  • Role 2: Forward trauma management and emergency medical treatment.
  • Role 3: Theater hospitalization.
  • Role 4: Definitive care.
• Plan ahead, manage workforce and resources, keep clinical skills current, and reduce risk to other military requirements.

Facilitate Interoperability in the MHS

• Strengthen links and relationships among all installations and missions.
• Promote safe, quality care.
• Responsibly manage resources and limit unwarranted duplication.

Reinforce Partnerships

• Partner with federal agencies, allies and partners, and civilian health systems to support military missions.
• Generate, sustain, and build health readiness.

Invest in Military Hospitals and Clinics

• Build up medical force generation.
• Deliver quality medical care.
• Build and maintain workforce skills.
• Prepare all locations to handle casualty reception.
• Support and build centers of excellence.

Download the MHS Strategy