Improving Access to High-Quality Mental Health Care for Veterans

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ISBN 13 : 9780309708333
Total Pages : 0 pages
Book Rating : 4.7/5 (83 download)

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Book Synopsis Improving Access to High-Quality Mental Health Care for Veterans by : National Academies of Sciences Engineering and Medicine

Download or read book Improving Access to High-Quality Mental Health Care for Veterans written by National Academies of Sciences Engineering and Medicine and published by . This book was released on 2024-05-16 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Evaluation of the Department of Veterans Affairs Mental Health Services

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Publisher : National Academies Press
ISBN 13 : 0309466601
Total Pages : 467 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (94 download)

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Book Synopsis Evaluation of the Department of Veterans Affairs Mental Health Services by : National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine

Download or read book Evaluation of the Department of Veterans Affairs Mental Health Services written by National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine and published by National Academies Press. This book was released on 2018-03-29 with total page 467 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Approximately 4 million U.S. service members took part in the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. Shortly after troops started returning from their deployments, some active-duty service members and veterans began experiencing mental health problems. Given the stressors associated with war, it is not surprising that some service members developed such mental health conditions as posttraumatic stress disorder, depression, and substance use disorder. Subsequent epidemiologic studies conducted on military and veteran populations that served in the operations in Afghanistan and Iraq provided scientific evidence that those who fought were in fact being diagnosed with mental illnesses and experiencing mental healthâ€"related outcomesâ€"in particular, suicideâ€"at a higher rate than the general population. This report provides a comprehensive assessment of the quality, capacity, and access to mental health care services for veterans who served in the Armed Forces in Operation Enduring Freedom/Operation Iraqi Freedom/Operation New Dawn. It includes an analysis of not only the quality and capacity of mental health care services within the Department of Veterans Affairs, but also barriers faced by patients in utilizing those services.

Returning Home from Iraq and Afghanistan

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Publisher : National Academies Press
ISBN 13 : 0309152852
Total Pages : 193 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (91 download)

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Book Synopsis Returning Home from Iraq and Afghanistan by : Institute of Medicine

Download or read book Returning Home from Iraq and Afghanistan written by Institute of Medicine and published by National Academies Press. This book was released on 2010-03-31 with total page 193 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Nearly 1.9 million U.S. troops have been deployed to Afghanistan and Iraq since October 2001. Many service members and veterans face serious challenges in readjusting to normal life after returning home. This initial book presents findings on the most critical challenges, and lays out the blueprint for the second phase of the study to determine how best to meet the needs of returning troops and their families.

Improving the Quality of Health Care for Mental and Substance-Use Conditions

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Publisher : National Academies Press
ISBN 13 : 0309133661
Total Pages : 528 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (91 download)

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Book Synopsis Improving the Quality of Health Care for Mental and Substance-Use Conditions by : Institute of Medicine

Download or read book Improving the Quality of Health Care for Mental and Substance-Use Conditions written by Institute of Medicine and published by National Academies Press. This book was released on 2006-03-29 with total page 528 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Each year, more than 33 million Americans receive health care for mental or substance-use conditions, or both. Together, mental and substance-use illnesses are the leading cause of death and disability for women, the highest for men ages 15-44, and the second highest for all men. Effective treatments exist, but services are frequently fragmented and, as with general health care, there are barriers that prevent many from receiving these treatments as designed or at all. The consequences of this are seriousâ€"for these individuals and their families; their employers and the workforce; for the nation's economy; as well as the education, welfare, and justice systems. Improving the Quality of Health Care for Mental and Substance-Use Conditions examines the distinctive characteristics of health care for mental and substance-use conditions, including payment, benefit coverage, and regulatory issues, as well as health care organization and delivery issues. This new volume in the Quality Chasm series puts forth an agenda for improving the quality of this care based on this analysis. Patients and their families, primary health care providers, specialty mental health and substance-use treatment providers, health care organizations, health plans, purchasers of group health care, and all involved in health care for mental and substanceâ€"use conditions will benefit from this guide to achieving better care.

Ready to Serve

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Publisher :
ISBN 13 : 9780833089427
Total Pages : 30 pages
Book Rating : 4.0/5 (894 download)

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Book Synopsis Ready to Serve by : Terri L. Tanielian

Download or read book Ready to Serve written by Terri L. Tanielian and published by . This book was released on 2014 with total page 30 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Ensuring that military veterans and their families have access to high-quality mental health care is a national priority. Over the past several years, the Departments of Defense and Veterans Affairs have increased the number of mental health professionals working within their facilities and have rolled out training and quality improvement initiatives designed to promote the use of evidence-based treatments. Despite these important efforts, research continues to demonstrate that many veterans prefer to seek services outside the Department of Defense and/or the Department of Veterans Affairs. Thus, providers working in the civilian sector are an increasingly important part of the overall workforce addressing veterans' mental health needs. To better understand a key aspect of our nation's ability to provide veterans and their families with access to high-quality mental health care, RAND conducted a survey of civilian mental health providers to gather information about their competency with military and veteran culture and their training and experience treating posttraumatic stress disorder and depression. This report provides the results of that survey. The findings and recommendations from this study should be relevant to individuals, organizations, and policy officials concerned about the capacity of the civilian health care sector to deliver culturally competent, high-quality services to veterans and their families.

Transforming Health Care Scheduling and Access

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Publisher : National Academies Press
ISBN 13 : 0309339227
Total Pages : 226 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (93 download)

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Book Synopsis Transforming Health Care Scheduling and Access by : Institute of Medicine

Download or read book Transforming Health Care Scheduling and Access written by Institute of Medicine and published by National Academies Press. This book was released on 2015-08-24 with total page 226 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: According to Transforming Health Care Scheduling and Access, long waits for treatment are a function of the disjointed manner in which most health systems have evolved to accommodate the needs and the desires of doctors and administrators, rather than those of patients. The result is a health care system that deploys its most valuable resource-highly trained personnel-inefficiently, leading to an unnecessary imbalance between the demand for appointments and the supply of open appointments. This study makes the case that by using the techniques of systems engineering, new approaches to management, and increased patient and family involvement, the current health care system can move forward to one with greater focus on the preferences of patients to provide convenient, efficient, and excellent health care without the need for costly investment. Transforming Health Care Scheduling and Access identifies best practices for making significant improvements in access and system-level change. This report makes recommendations for principles and practices to improve access by promoting efficient scheduling. This study will be a valuable resource for practitioners to progress toward a more patient-focused "How can we help you today?" culture.

Crossing the Quality Chasm

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Publisher : National Academies Press
ISBN 13 : 0309132967
Total Pages : 359 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (91 download)

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Book Synopsis Crossing the Quality Chasm by : Institute of Medicine

Download or read book Crossing the Quality Chasm written by Institute of Medicine and published by National Academies Press. This book was released on 2001-07-19 with total page 359 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Second in a series of publications from the Institute of Medicine's Quality of Health Care in America project Today's health care providers have more research findings and more technology available to them than ever before. Yet recent reports have raised serious doubts about the quality of health care in America. Crossing the Quality Chasm makes an urgent call for fundamental change to close the quality gap. This book recommends a sweeping redesign of the American health care system and provides overarching principles for specific direction for policymakers, health care leaders, clinicians, regulators, purchasers, and others. In this comprehensive volume the committee offers: A set of performance expectations for the 21st century health care system. A set of 10 new rules to guide patient-clinician relationships. A suggested organizing framework to better align the incentives inherent in payment and accountability with improvements in quality. Key steps to promote evidence-based practice and strengthen clinical information systems. Analyzing health care organizations as complex systems, Crossing the Quality Chasm also documents the causes of the quality gap, identifies current practices that impede quality care, and explores how systems approaches can be used to implement change.

Veterans Access to Mental Health Care

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Publisher :
ISBN 13 : 9781634851954
Total Pages : 0 pages
Book Rating : 4.8/5 (519 download)

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Book Synopsis Veterans Access to Mental Health Care by : Edgar W. Schneider

Download or read book Veterans Access to Mental Health Care written by Edgar W. Schneider and published by . This book was released on 2016 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Between 2005 and 2013, the number of veterans receiving mental health care from the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Veterans Health Administration (VHA) increased 63 percent, outpacing overall growth in veterans receiving any VHA health care. In fiscal year 2014, VHA spent more than $3.9 billion providing outpatient specialty mental health care (mental health care) to more than 1.5 million veterans. This book examines, among other things, veterans access to timely mental health care, and VHAs related oversight.

Homelessness Among U.S. Veterans

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Publisher : Oxford University Press
ISBN 13 : 0190695137
Total Pages : 297 pages
Book Rating : 4.1/5 (96 download)

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Book Synopsis Homelessness Among U.S. Veterans by : Jack Tsai

Download or read book Homelessness Among U.S. Veterans written by Jack Tsai and published by Oxford University Press. This book was released on 2019 with total page 297 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The challenges facing military veterans who return to civilian life in the United States are persistent and well documented. But for all the political outcry and attempts to improve military members' readjustments, veterans of all service eras face formidable obstacles related to mental health, substance abuse, employment, and — most damningly — homelessness. Homelessness Among U.S. Veterans synthesizes the new glut of research on veteran homelessness — geographic trends, root causes, effective and ineffective interventions to mitigate it — in a format that provides a needed reference as this public health fight continues to be fought. Codifying the data and research from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) campaign to end veteran homelessness, psychologist Jack Tsai links disparate lines of research to produce an advanced and elegant resource on a defining social issue of our time.

Toward Understanding the Healthcare Value of Veterans Affairs' Primary Care - Mental Health Integration

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Publisher :
ISBN 13 :
Total Pages : 90 pages
Book Rating : 4.:/5 (14 download)

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Book Synopsis Toward Understanding the Healthcare Value of Veterans Affairs' Primary Care - Mental Health Integration by : Lucinda Leung

Download or read book Toward Understanding the Healthcare Value of Veterans Affairs' Primary Care - Mental Health Integration written by Lucinda Leung and published by . This book was released on 2017 with total page 90 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Access to high-quality mental health specialty care for primary care patients has historically been problematic. Behavioral health care integration into the patient-centered medical homes has been shown to be effective, but dissemination and implementation of these team-based models of care remain challenging to healthcare systems. As such, lessons can be learned from VA's national implementation of Primary Care-Mental Health Integration (PC-MHI). Here we devise and validate a new metric for VA clinic engagement in PC-MHI (number of PC-MHI service users/number of primary care patients) during each year. This is a retrospective longitudinal cohort study of 112,737 primary care patients in 29 Southern California VA clinics from October 1, 2008 to September 30, 2013. First, we examined a subset of 66,638 patients with mental health diagnoses to understand access to mental health care and other healthcare services. Our multilevel regression models used clinic PC-MHI engagement to predict relative rates for the full-range of patient healthcare utilization and total VA costs, adjusting for year and clinic fixed effects, other clinic interventions, and patient characteristics. Then, we constructed quality metrics for 12,663 patients who were newly diagnosed to have depression. Our fully-adjusted regression models used clinic PC-MHI engagement to predict probabilities of follow-up within 84 and 180 days and receipt of minimally appropriate treatment for these patients. Greater clinic PC-MHI engagement was associated with significantly more mental health visits and less non-primary care based mental health specialty (MHS) visits, consistent with a substitution of PC-MHI visits for MHS visits. It was associated with less general MHS visits, rather than more specialized MHS visits. This reduction appeared targeted at patients with mild-to-moderate mental illnesses (i.e., depression), rather than with serious mental illness (i.e., schizophrenia, bipolar disorder). Despite shifting mental health care for Veterans with less complicated mental illnesses from specialty to primary care, our findings demonstrated no difference in depression care quality. We did not find adverse impacts on ED visits, hospitalizations, total patient costs, or mortality. Therefore, PC-MHI may improve mental healthcare value for primary care patients, as it may have improved realized accessibility to mental health care without necessarily increasing costs.

Invisible Wounds of War

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Publisher : Rand Corporation
ISBN 13 : 0833044540
Total Pages : 499 pages
Book Rating : 4.8/5 (33 download)

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Book Synopsis Invisible Wounds of War by : Terri L. Tanielian

Download or read book Invisible Wounds of War written by Terri L. Tanielian and published by Rand Corporation. This book was released on 2008 with total page 499 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Since October 2001, approximately 1.64 million U.S. troops have been deployed for Operations Enduring Freedom and Iraqi Freedom (OEF/OIF) in Afghanistan and Iraq. Early evidence suggests that the psychological toll of these deployments -- many involving prolonged exposure to combat-related stress over multiple rotations -- may be disproportionately high compared with the physical injuries of combat. In the face of mounting public concern over post-deployment health care issues confronting OEF/OIF veterans, several task forces, independent review groups, and a Presidential Commission have been convened to examine the care of the war wounded and make recommendations. Concerns have been most recently centered on two combat-related injuries in particular: post-traumatic stress disorder and traumatic brain injury. With the increasing incidence of suicide and suicide attempts among returning veterans, concern about depression is also on the rise. The study discussed in this monograph focuses on post-traumatic stress disorder, major depression, and traumatic brain injury, not only because of current high-level policy interest but also because, unlike the physical wounds of war, these conditions are often invisible to the eye, remaining invisible to other servicemembers, family members, and society in general. All three conditions affect mood, thoughts, and behavior; yet these wounds often go unrecognized and unacknowledged. The effect of traumatic brain injury is still poorly understood, leaving a large gap in knowledge related to how extensive the problem is or how to address it. RAND conducted a comprehensive study of the post-deployment health-related needs associated with these three conditions among OEF/OIF veterans, the health care system in place to meet those needs, gaps in the care system, and the costs associated with these conditions and with providing quality health care to all those in need. This monograph presents the results of our study, which should be of interest to mental health treatment providers; health policymakers, particularly those charged with caring for our nation's veterans; and U.S. service men and women, their families, and the concerned public. All the research products from this study are available at http://veterans.rand.org. Data collection for this study began in April 2007and concluded in January 2008. Specific activities included a critical reviewof the extant literature on the prevalence of post-traumatic stress disorder, major depression, and traumatic brain injury and their short- and long-term consequences; a population-based survey of service members and veterans who served in Afghanistan or Iraq to assess health status and symptoms, as well asutilization of and barriers to care; a review of existing programs to treat service members and veterans with the three conditions; focus groups withmilitary service members and their spouses; and the development of a microsimulation model to forecast the economic costs of these conditions overtime. Among our recommendations is that effective treatments documented in the scientific literature -- evidence-based care -- are available for PTSD and major depression. Delivery of such care to all veterans with PTSD or majordepression would pay for itself within two years, or even save money, by improving productivity and reducing medical and mortality costs. Such care may also be a cost-effective way to retain a ready and healthy military force for the future. However, to ensure that this care is delivered requires system-level changes across the Department of Defense, the Department of Veterans Affairs, and the U.S. health care system.

National Research Action Plan

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Publisher : Createspace Independent Publishing Platform
ISBN 13 : 9781500578282
Total Pages : 0 pages
Book Rating : 4.5/5 (782 download)

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Book Synopsis National Research Action Plan by : Department of Department of Veterans Affairs

Download or read book National Research Action Plan written by Department of Department of Veterans Affairs and published by Createspace Independent Publishing Platform. This book was released on 2014-07-20 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This NRAP will complement the 2013 Interim Report of the Interagency Task Force on Military and Veterans Mental Health (May 2013) to ensure that Veterans, service members, and their families receive necessary mental health services and support. Close collaborations between the agencies will expedite fulfillment of the strategies outlined in the NRAP. The DoD, VA, HHS, and the Department of Education understand the gravity and urgency of the problems and are committed to advancing the health of our military and nation through their collective research. To ensure progress and success, the agencies will schedule formal joint review and analysis of efforts. Further, continued analysis of needs using the Interagency Research Continuum Approach is planned. The Agency research working group co-chairs will be responsible for overseeing the formation of any necessary new workgroups or initiatives to deliver on the plans of this NRAP. Collectively, these activities will support the Order's research goals to prevent suicide, to reduce the number of individuals affected by PTSD, TBI, and comorbidities, and to improve the quality of life of those who do experience these conditions through better-coordinated and synchronized efforts to accelerate progress in prevention, diagnosis, and treatment.

Evaluation of the Department of Veterans Affairs Mental Health Services

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Author :
Publisher : National Academies Press
ISBN 13 : 0309466571
Total Pages : 467 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (94 download)

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Book Synopsis Evaluation of the Department of Veterans Affairs Mental Health Services by : National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine

Download or read book Evaluation of the Department of Veterans Affairs Mental Health Services written by National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine and published by National Academies Press. This book was released on 2018-04-29 with total page 467 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Approximately 4 million U.S. service members took part in the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. Shortly after troops started returning from their deployments, some active-duty service members and veterans began experiencing mental health problems. Given the stressors associated with war, it is not surprising that some service members developed such mental health conditions as posttraumatic stress disorder, depression, and substance use disorder. Subsequent epidemiologic studies conducted on military and veteran populations that served in the operations in Afghanistan and Iraq provided scientific evidence that those who fought were in fact being diagnosed with mental illnesses and experiencing mental healthâ€"related outcomesâ€"in particular, suicideâ€"at a higher rate than the general population. This report provides a comprehensive assessment of the quality, capacity, and access to mental health care services for veterans who served in the Armed Forces in Operation Enduring Freedom/Operation Iraqi Freedom/Operation New Dawn. It includes an analysis of not only the quality and capacity of mental health care services within the Department of Veterans Affairs, but also barriers faced by patients in utilizing those services.

VA health care overview

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Publisher :
ISBN 13 :
Total Pages : 22 pages
Book Rating : 4.:/5 (31 download)

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Book Synopsis VA health care overview by : United States. Department of Veterans Affairs

Download or read book VA health care overview written by United States. Department of Veterans Affairs and published by . This book was released on 2004 with total page 22 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Access to U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Healthcare

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Publisher :
ISBN 13 :
Total Pages : 88 pages
Book Rating : 4.F/5 ( download)

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Book Synopsis Access to U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Healthcare by : United States. Congress. House. Committee on Veterans' Affairs. Subcommittee on Health

Download or read book Access to U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Healthcare written by United States. Congress. House. Committee on Veterans' Affairs. Subcommittee on Health and published by . This book was released on 2008 with total page 88 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Recommended Standards for Delivering High-Quality Care to Veterans with Invisible Wounds

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Publisher : Rand Corporation
ISBN 13 : 1977408680
Total Pages : 68 pages
Book Rating : 4.9/5 (774 download)

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Book Synopsis Recommended Standards for Delivering High-Quality Care to Veterans with Invisible Wounds by : Carrie M. Farmer

Download or read book Recommended Standards for Delivering High-Quality Care to Veterans with Invisible Wounds written by Carrie M. Farmer and published by Rand Corporation. This book was released on 2022-05-09 with total page 68 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Traumatic brain injuries and psychological health problems such as posttraumatic stress disorder, depression, and substance use, often referred to as invisible wounds, are common among U.S. military veterans who served in the era after September 11, 2001. Although there are effective treatments for these conditions, it has been challenging to identify places that provide such care, as there has not been a shared definition of what makes care high quality. In a previous study, high-quality care for invisible wounds was defined as care that is veteran-centered, accessible, and evidence-based and that includes outcome monitoring. Identifying standards to operationalize this definition is essential for improving access to high-quality, effective care. In this report, the authors recommend ten standards for the delivery of high-quality care for invisible wounds and provide considerations for implementing and disseminating these standards. Adoption of these standards of care would allow veterans, veteran-serving organizations, and payers to identify high-quality care providers and distinguish between good and poor care. The standards also provide a road map for providers that fall short of the benchmark and might need to invest in training and other resources to improve quality and demonstrate their ability to provide the best possible care for veterans living with invisible wounds.

Interventions to Improve Veterans' Access to Care

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Publisher : Createspace Independent Pub
ISBN 13 : 9781490364001
Total Pages : 50 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (64 download)

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Book Synopsis Interventions to Improve Veterans' Access to Care by : U. S. Department of Veterans Affairs

Download or read book Interventions to Improve Veterans' Access to Care written by U. S. Department of Veterans Affairs and published by Createspace Independent Pub. This book was released on 2013-06-05 with total page 50 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Access to healthcare has been identified as a critical issue, both by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) and the larger medical community. Access has been broadly defined as “the timely use of personal health services to achieve the best health outcomes” and has been hypothesized to have three discrete steps: 1) gaining entry into the system, 2) getting access to sites of care where patients can receive needed services, and 3) finding providers who meet the needs of the patient and with whom a productive working relationship can form. Historically, VA has focused on the first two steps (getting access to the system and sites of care) and has adopted Demakis's conceptualization of access as an individual's ability to obtain the healthcare they need within an appropriate time frame. Recently, researchers within the VA have begun to develop an updated conceptualization of access which takes into account the impact of new technology on access and places a greater focus on outcomes beyond increased access. Specifically, while the definition of access remains limited to the ability to connect with needed care, the reconceptualization acknowledges post-access outcomes such as satisfaction, symptom levels, and functioning. As such, we sought to conduct a review of the literature that would clarify the current state of the knowledge regarding the link between access to healthcare (both objective and perceived access) and system-level (e.g., utilization, satisfaction with care) and patient-level (quality of life, symptoms, mortality) outcomes. Further, the VA has continued its commitment to improving access for Veterans, and has implemented several programs designed to improve access to care for all veterans. Examples include the establishment of clinics located in areas distant from VA facilities (Community-Based Outpatient Clinics or CBOCs), mobile clinics, and increased use of telecommunications (telephone, internet, or videoconferencing). As such, we also examined the efficacy of interventions designed to improve access, with a focus on access, system-level, and patient-level outcomes. The Key Questions addressed in this review are: KEY QUESTION #1: What is the evidence that variation in veterans' ability to obtain needed health care (i.e., access) contributes to variation in system level (e.g., utilization, satisfaction) or patient level (e.g., quality of life, functional ability, mortality) outcomes? KEY QUESTION #1A: Does the effect of access on system and/or patient level outcomes differ by patient (e.g., demographics, overall health, illness severity), treatment (e.g., mental health, physical health), or setting (e.g., rural, urban, community, VA) characteristics? KEY QUESTION #2: What interventions have been successful in improving access for patient populations with reduced health care access? KEY QUESTION #2A: Have interventions that have improved health care access led to improvements in system level and patient level outcomes?