VHA - iEX Talks

VHA iEX Talks uses storytelling to highlight the ingenuity and power of innovation in creating real value and impact for VHA employees, academia, industry partners, and the Veteran community. Employees share their experiences in six-to-eight minute TED Talk-style presentations that challenge our beliefs, stir the imagination, tell a great story, and most importantly, demonstrate how their innovation is forging a healthier future for all Veterans.

Speakers
iEX Talks
Innovation Stories
VHA Shark Tank
iEX Awards
VA IPMD

Tuesday, October 25

The Reimagining Mindset

Brynn Cole

The world is changing at an ever-rapid pace, presenting care systems and teams with a dizzying array of complex problems to solve and opportunities to capture. To meet these opportunities and to stay ahead of future shifts, we’re inviting everyone to join us in Reimagining Veteran Healthcare. But how and where can you get started? Human centered designer and recovering solutioneer Brynn Cole shares a simple story of what a Reimagining mindset looks like in action -along with practical tips for your own Reimagining journey. Please note that no chickens were harmed in the making of this story.

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VHA must increase its agility to stay relevant.

Lindsay Riegler

The VA has a lot to learn from our industry partners. As healthcare technology rapidly changes the way consumers and professionals practice and consume medicine, VHA must increase it’s agility to stay relevant. Collaborating across program offices to ensure governance approval, policy generation, funding and procurement pathways can be an arduous process. Sneak a peek at lessons learned thus far and how VA Innovation will ensure it remains relevant and ahead of the game.

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Bio:

Lindsay R. James Riegler is a Research Speech-Language Pathologist, Adjunct Associate Professor at the University of Cincinnati’s College of Allied Health Sciences and Innovation Specialist at the Cincinnati VA Medical Center. Dr. Riegler was the FY 22 Entrepreneur in Residence Fellow through the VHA Innovation Ecosystem’s Fellowship, where her efforts focused on collaborating with national level stakeholders in establishing Remote Patient Monitoring policy and implementation solutions. In addition, she is the Professional Development Manager for the American Speech-Language Hearing Association Special Interest Group, Telepractice. She is a certified brain injury specialist with 15 years of expertise in delivering evidence based cognitive rehabilitation via telehealth to Veterans with traumatic brain injury. She is a standing reviewer for multiple peer reviewed journals and an invited member of the VA Rehabilitation Research and Development Merit Review board. Her research has resulted in numerous local and national presentations, grant funded projects, multiple peer reviewed publications and co-authored book chapters. She has experience serving as Principal Investigator on randomized clinical drug trials and was recently awarded Mid-Career Research Scientist Award from the University of Cincinnati. Dr. Riegler is an avid traveler and enjoys spending time with her husband and three kids.

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Using Simulation and Technology in Construction – Where are we going?

Devin Harrison

During our session, we will talk about SimLEARN’s (14HIL2) partnership with The Office of Construction and Facilities Management (CFM) to develop Simulation-based Healthcare Design Testing (SbHDT) and Digital Twin virtual technology. This will test design layouts to identify latent threats within a design prior to actual construction, and promote real-time collaboration, creation, and dissemination of simulation content, scenarios, and best practices across VHA’s 170 medical centers.

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Bio:

Devin’s background includes engineering, contract management, and project management. He has been fortunate to have experience on a diverse range of projects, including mobile application development, software application integration, construction renovation, and construction design. He continues to use his talents to help modernize VA and enhance Veterans’ experiences. He has experience as:

Diffusion Specialist (Project Manager) for the creation of VA Pressure Ulcer Resource (VA PUR) Mobile Application. Currently on the Apple App and Google Play stores.
Diffusion Specialist (Project Manager) for the Integration of 4 Sight Eyeglass Ordering software. Currently In operation at 61 facilities across 12 VISNs.
CBOC Coordinator (Project Manager) for outpatient clinics within the Atlanta VAMC catchment area. Responsible for renovation, construction, design, and activation of new outpatient clinics within the Metro Atlanta area.

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Future of VA Healthcare: A Point-of-Care Biomanufacturing Hub

Kimberlee Potter

Our vision for VA healthcare will be to offer Veterans point-of-care Biofabrication solutions for the repair of diseased or damaged tissues and organs for the customized restoration of health. To achieve this vision, our mission is to establish an integrated biomanufacturing ecosystem that aims to serve Veterans first with customized Biofabrication solutions. At the start of this journey in 2021, we pitched the idea of a Biofabrication Community of Science, to bring together the collective intelligence of clinicians, scientists, engineers, regulatory specialists, funders, industrial partners, and Veteran support organizations to build a team science approach to realize the operating room of the future. In 2022 we launched a community platform at VA’s first Biofabrication Community of Science Symposium to leverage a network of internal and external stakeholders across the biofabrication continuum from bench research to clinical translation. In the next phase of this journey, we have started the process of constructing a hub and spoke model of a biomanufacturing enterprise solution to offer knowledge, skills, and abilities to develop good laboratory practices across every stage of the development pipeline for translation to the clinic. In the final development phase, our plan is to support team science constellation projects with internal and external stakeholders in support of first-human clinical trials with the eventual goal of returning Veterans to whole health by 2030.

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Bio:

Dr. Potter joined the Office of Research and Development at the Department of Veterans Affairs in 2011, where she is the Scientific Portfolio Manager of Surgery, Trauma, and Restorative Medicine. She currently serves as the VA representative on the Forum for Regenerative Medicine at the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, the Armed Forces Institute of Regenerative Medicine Oversight Committee, and CDMRP’s Programmatic panel for the Reconstructive Transplantation Research Program. She received her undergraduate degree in Engineering Chemistry from Queen’s University in Canada and her Ph.D. from Cambridge University in England. She joined the National Institutes of Health as a visiting scientist and she spent 10 years at the Armed Forces Institute of Pathology as the Technical Director of the Magnetic Resonance Microscopy Facility where she applied noninvasive imaging techniques to the study of forensic, pathologic, and engineered tissues. Dr. Potter credits her training in Chemical Engineering, Chemistry, Medical Imaging, and Tissue Engineering as the ideal framework to support the translation of biofabrication solutions to the operating room.

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Democratizing Data 2.0

Amanda Purnell

We all need the right information, at the right time, in the right context to do our work. This presentation will highlight the innovators who are working across VA to test, develop and validate new data and analytics technologies. This presentation seeks to share the story of the Data and Analytics Community of Practice, the ideas and technologies being tested, the lessons learned, and the opportunities for novice data users to participate in efforts to understand and continuously improve the services and care we provide for Veterans.

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Trust Me

Priya Joshi

Trust is core to healthcare, but we rarely factor it into the logistics of how we provide care and design interventions. To build trust, you have to provide services or convey information in a manner that is trustworthy. To provide services or convey information in a manner that is trustworthy, you have to figure out what trustworthiness entails to those who don't necessarily have a reason to see you or your intervention as warranting of that trust. This talk considers how to translate trust into practice from the lens of a pragmatist who can't promise but suspects it will change practice.

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Wednesday, October 26

PEOPLE are the Solution

Allison Amrhein

VHA Innovators Network Director, Allison Amrhein, will let you in on an innovation secret and how VHA has unlocked the power of employees to create healthcare solutions and change workplace culture.

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Bio:

A career Federal employee with a simple mission enable others to see that they are individually and uniquely important to making a difference within even the largest bureaucracies. Allison currently is the director of a team of 40+ brilliant colleagues throughout VHA’s Innovators Network (iNET). iNET is a boots-on-the-ground innovation empowerment program to operationalize frontline-employee designed innovation within VHA; an incubator for internal innovators. Over 600+ employees and 2M Veterans have been impacted by the work of iNET. She also created an initiative within iNET called the Greenhouse, where external innovators can collaborate with VA staff and Veterans to co-design the innovative products of the future. The Greenhouse also ensures the voice of the Veteran and VA employees are heard as new products are being developed in the private sector. Her past life experience includes roles as a public health and health systems researcher, as well as writer/editor. She is also a 2021 Partnership for Public Service, Excellence in Government Fellow and 2022 VA Health Care Leadership and Development Program Fellow. In the pursuit of a healthy work/life balance, she is also a certified yoga instructor, dog mom, and has a six-year-old son named Charlie.

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Racing Past Chaos to Drive Change in Evaluating Medical Emergency Care Processes

Lisa Baker

Help! My patient is non-responsive, call a Code Blue! Events such as a Code Blue can often bring about chaos and unpredictability which can result in an adverse outcome. Introducing a novel approach using a simulation-based strategy to identify potential failure points and incorporating the applied strategies from the race car industry into the healthcare setting when responding to medical emergencies.

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Bio:

Lisa Baker, a 21-year Navy Veteran, joined the Department of Veterans Administration in 2013 and currently serves as the VHA National Program Director for the Resuscitation Education and Innovation (REdI) program. In 2021, as SimLEARN reorganized, she was also appointed as the Director of Clinical Learning and Innovation. Ms. Baker, a Registered Nurse, possess experience in executive medicine, quality management, education and critical care. She has a vested interest to ensure employees are equipped with the right tools, processes and technologies to respond and care for our Nation’s Heroes. In these roles, she is responsible for agency-wide oversight and support of a robust resuscitation portfolio, the design and distribution of standardized simulation-based training through innovative learning platforms and leveraging interprofessional simulation education and expertise through collaborative engagement with VA Medical Centers.

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SimVET program for vetting healthcare solutions

Scott Wiltz

This will introduce the SimVET (Simulation Validation, Evaluation, and Testing) concept as a way to empower frontline staff to find better ways to acquire and implement new healthcare solutions including medical software, equipment, and devices. Using real-world clinical workflows, iterative simulation, and objective analysis, SimVET will leverage the power of group thought and user reviews to set the standard for a consumer-driven future in healthcare.

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Bio:

Dr. Scott Wiltz is a family doctor and Air Force Veteran, serving as the SimLEARN Medical Director. He is a graduate of LSUHSC School of Medicine in New Orleans, the Eglin Air Force Base Family Medicine Residency Program, and the Faculty Development Fellowship at the University of North Carolina – Chapel Hill. He served in the Air Force for 12 years as a clinician and educator. He began his VA career with SimLEARN in May 2017 and serves as a primary contact for SimLEARN with national program offices, clinical subject matter experts, and other partners in VA and DoD as well as other government, academic and private sector groups. Dr. Wiltz supervises the Emerging Health Technology Integration efforts at SimLEARN and leads the SimVET program for vetting health care solutions so that nothing touches a Veteran until it has been validated as safe and effective through simulation. As a leader, physician, and Veteran, Dr. Wiltz is dedicated to ensuring the VA meets its mission to care for all “who shall have borne the battle.”

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Take the road less travelled, but you don’t have to travel alone…

Caitlin Rawlins

To combat siloed efforts VHA-wide, the VHA XR Network was established as a resource hub and community for VA employees interested in, or currently using XR Technology, with patients, caregivers, and/or employees. Most importantly, the XR Network is an example of a support system, one of the key needs of VHA Innovators in successfully developing and sustaining innovative products and programs. Listen in to hear VHA XR Network co-lead Caitlin Rawlins talk about her journey in Innovation, how a support system helped her succeed, and the XR Network’s role as a support system for others as they take the road less travelled.

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Bio:

Caitlin Rawlins has been as a nurse for over 10 years, the last 5 spent with the Department of Veterans Affairs. In 2017, Ms. Rawlins initiated the first positive distraction focused VR program for pain and anxiety management for post-operative patients in VHA. Since that time, Ms. Rawlins has received multiple grants for expanding the project, diffusion support, and has published two manuscripts about clinical outcomes and program development. She now aids in leading VHA Innovation as an Innovation Specialist, co-lead of the VHA Extended Reality (XR) Network, and detailed XR Specialist for VHA Innovation Ecosystem. As VHA XR Network co-lead, she has supported the expansion of the VHA XR Network from one facility to over 160 and engaging more than 1,200 VA employees. Recently, Ms. Rawlins was awarded the 2022 G2Xchange Disruptive Tech Program Award and, along with other OHIL Immersive Tech team members, was a recipient of the 2022 Service to the Citizen Award.

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