The Defense Health Agency is deploying artificial intelligence and virtual healthcare technology as it looks to a future battlefield where traditional medicine may not be possible.

The military health system is already using virtual healthcare capabilities that allow specialists to provide remote consultation to battlefield medics. The technology enables real-time guidance for complex procedures that might have been impossible without immediate specialist presence.

Dr. Stephen Ferrera, acting assistant secretary for Health Affairs, said the military health system is fundamentally rethinking how it delivers care in wartime environments, particularly as the Pentagon shifts focus to regions where vast distances could complicate traditional battlefield medicine.

“We are the only health care system in America that goes to war. And so, our North Star always has to be that we are ready to provide first-class, world-class health care to our service members, to our warfighters, should we have to go into harm’s way,” Ferrara said on Federal Monthly Insights – Health IT.

The modern battlefield

The emphasis on readiness comes as military medical planners grapple with scenarios where air superiority, a key advantage during the War on Terror, may not exist. During conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan, wounded service members were often evacuated to advanced medical facilities within the ‘golden hour,” contributing to the highest survivability rates in warfare history. But future conflicts may demand that field medics manage patients for extended periods without immediate evacuation options. That’s where technology becomes a force multiplier, according to Dr. Ferrara.

“How can we leverage artificial intelligence, other technological systems to be able to empower and use those as force multipliers for our field personnel?” Ferrara asked. “We can have specialists, whether they’re trauma specialists, intensivists, surgeons — you name it — be able to in real time, help guide people that are on the ground at the front line.”

Healthcare innovation at home and abroad

DHA is also rolling out advanced electronic health record systems designed specifically for deployed environments. The Battlefield Assisted Trauma Distributed Observation Kit — known as “BATDOK” — can track wounded service members from initial injury through their entire care from international warzone evacuation to facilities like Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland.

“It’s also synchronous, so a provider back here in the states can know exactly what’s going on with that patient in real time and give highly specialized, informed clinical decision support to a battlefield provider,” Ferrara said.

The technology is moving beyond battlefield applications. Military treatment facilities are implementing ambient listening technology that automatically transcribes clinical notes as providers speak — reducing administrative burden and allowing more time for direct patient care.

“The technology can listen, and you can speak to it, and it can just document instead of the old days where you had to write it and then type it out” Ferrara said. “That enables us to have our people who are our most valuable resource, spending their time doing direct patient care.”

The Military Health System is also leveraging generational advantages in technology adoption. Ferrara noted that medical personnel under 40 are ‘largely digital natives’ who have grown up with technology, making them more comfortable with new systems in their practice.

However, the increased reliance on technology raises questions about cybersecurity and communication reliability in contested environments. Military planners recognize that cyberspace is now part of the battlefield, creating both opportunities and vulnerabilities.

“We are always looking at how could we do these things asynchronously or offline.” Ferrar said. “That’s where things, especially like AI can come into play, where if a person on a battlefield can have a device and have tools that can help them,” Ferrara told The Federal Drive with Terry Gerton.

Technology deployment is part of a broader modernization effort that includes expanding partnerships with civilian healthcare systems and the Department of Veterans Affairs. The Military Health system is implementing a common electronic health record, MHS Genesis, that will eventually provide seamless care transitions from military service to veteran status.

“Theater Genesis” represents the deployed version of this system, already operational on hospital ships and in European theaters. The goal is creating an integrated healthcare record that follows service members from stateside facilities through combat zones and back.

For Ferrara, who served 25 years as a Navy physician with four operational deployments, the technology investments represent a personal commitment to ensuring military medical readiness.

“The most important thing is that I can feel I take a very personal stake in knowing that our service members, when they go down range in harms way, are going to get the best care that they can possibly get. That’s honoring the pact that we make, not only with those service members, but with their parents,” Ferrara said.