90th MDG: Devoted to care

  • Published
  • By Airman 1st Class Brandon Valle
  • 90th Missile Wing Public Affairs
F.E. WARREN AIR FORCE BASE, Wyo. --  The 90th Medical Group offers many services and opportunities for Airmen to stay fit for duty. One of the main programs the clinic offers is access to doctors and nurses for every day afflictions and injuries.

"[The 90th MDG] uses a system called Patient Centered Medical Home teams to provide care to Airmen and their families," said Col. Hans Ritschard, 90th MDG commander. "A medical home team consists of a doctor or primary care manager; an extender, which is a nurse practitioner or a physician assistant; a registered nurse; and five medical technicians."

The main goal of the 90th MDG is to provide every patient three things: access to appointments, continuity of care with the same healthcare team and top quality medical care, Ritschard said. The clinic staff has started shifting patients between the PCMH teams to provide better access to care, Ritschard said.

"Access to care is the ability for you to be seen when you need to be seen, without having to go downtown to get the care you need," Ritschard said.

As new Airmen and their families begin using the clinic, some teams were beginning to get full, he added.

"We've noticed our family health and pediatrics medical home teams were almost at 100 percent capacity," said Maj. Elizabeth Somsel, 90th MDG chief of medical staff. "We are shifting around 500 patients, from family care into flight medicine, to free up room for new members."

The bottom line is the clinic wants to provide care to all patients assigned to F.E. Warren AFB.

"Continuity of care is the availability of our teams to get to know their patients on a more personal level," Ritschard said.

Being assigned to a PCMH team allows the doctors to have a view of the 'whole picture,' Somsel said. This gives them a better understanding of the Airmen and their dependants, allowing a better quality of care for every patient.

Quality of care is our devotion to making sure each patient is given the best care possible, Ritschard said.

"We want people to understand one thing," Somsel said. "We provide high quality and safe care for every patient. Yes we are part of the Military Health System, but we provide the same, if not better, quality of care as any outside services."