VA's Digital Healthcare Evolution and AI Workforce Expansion

Big news from the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA)! After a busy 2023 delivering care to more veterans than ever, the VA's Office of Information and Technology (VA OIT) is gearing up for an exciting 2024. VA Chief Information Officer (CIO) Kurt DelBene shared that the agency is making a "modest request" to beef up its AI workforce, aligning with President Biden's recent AI executive order.

VA full article: https://www.research.va.gov/naii/ai-inventory.cfm

The increased demand for VA benefits under the PACT Act, with over 40,000 new health care applications in September, highlights the urgency for enhanced digital healthcare tools. DelBene emphasized the importance of automation in handling the surge, making AI expertise a top priority.

Despite the recent congressional approval of a continuing resolution, DelBene stressed the challenges of staffing up under a CR, expressing the need for the proposed 2024 budget to accommodate the necessary expansion.

VA Chief Technology Officer (CTO) Charles Worthington shed light on the VA's focus on building a skilled AI team while ensuring existing staff receives proper training. The ongoing Artificial Intelligence Tech Sprint aims to identify tools easing healthcare worker burnout, with a balance between low-risk and high-impact use cases.

Worthington unveiled plans for a "refresh" of healthcare tools, including upgrading the My HealtheVet patient portal features. The goal is to integrate these features into the VA.gov platform for a more powerful and user-friendly experience, connecting core patient portal services seamlessly.

Exciting times lie ahead for the VA as it evolves digitally and embraces the potential of AI to enhance healthcare for our veterans.

Reference article.

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