Department of State*
UNITES
STATES DEPARTMENT OF STATE
OFFICE OF MEDICAL SERVICES
DEPARTMENT OF STATE AND THE FOREIGN SERVICE
2401 E St NW SA-1
Washington, D.C 20522-0102
202-663-1611
Foreign
Service Medical Practice
Mission
Statement:
The mission of the Office of Medical Services of the Department of State is to
promote the health of all under its care by encouraging prevention of illness
and facilitating access to care.
The Foreign Service medical program is responsible for approximately
37,000 people living and working around the world. In addition to the Department of State there are approximately 200
additional federal agencies participating in the Medical Program.
The health care delivery system is two tiered. The Office of Medical Services, in Washington has overall administrative
and programs responsibility. Overseas
health units deliver care to our employees and their families while serving
overseas. There are approximately
165 health units staffed with locally engaged personnel or with Foreign Service
medical providers. The Foreign Service medical Corps is comprised of 43
physicians, 53 Health Practitioners, 10 Psychiatrists and 10 Laboratory
Technologists. Approximately 100
missions have no on-site health units at all.
The
overseas health units deliver primary care services to posts that range in size
from 60 to 3,000 persons. In order
to provide direct care and oversight of care received, all Foreign Service
providers have regional responsibilities.
Regional
responsibilities mean that a provider has primary responsibility for a
home-post, and regional responsibility for other embassies and consulates in a
geographic area. The oversight is
comprised of direct care, provided via telephone consultation and other distant
communication methods such as Tele-medicine. Physicians and Psychiatrists regularly travel up to70% of the time. Health Practitioners (NPs
and PAs) and Medical Technologists travel from 30 to 50% of the time. In the event of an emergency or other critical need in another post,
Foreign Service medical personnel must be prepared to travel on short notice.
In general, health units are well equipped for family practice needs.
There are a wide variety of Health Unit office configurations ranging from
rather extensive outpatient units with overnight capabilities and minor
emergency rooms, to more modest settings of one room with an exam area and some
storage space.
Practice locations can be in developed world settings with specialty
consultants and tertiary care centers nearby to remote sites with local
facilities to be used only in extreme situations as a last resort or till out of
country transport can be accomplished.
The Department operates five medical evacuation centers, located in
Washington, DC, Ft. Lauderdale, Fl. London, England, Pretoria, South Africa and
Singapore. The Medevac Centers are
established in those sites because of western standard medical care, ease of
access to professionals and facilities and long standing experience with the
medical community in these locations.
In addition to providing direct care to our community, Foreign Service
health professionals identify local resources, evaluate the breadth and depth of
the facilities and providers, learn the local public health profile, endemic
disease patterns, seasonal variations and participate in global reporting to the
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
All personnel and family members living abroad have medical clearance
examinations in order to determine if the post of assignment has the necessary
personnel and institutions to care for the individual’s particular medical
condition. The practice is
primarily family practice, monitoring chronic diseases, providing health
information and health education, disease surveillance and emergency care.
*Reprinted from Operational Medicine 2001, Health
Care in Military Settings, NAVMED P-5139, May 1, 2001, Bureau
of Medicine and Surgery, Department of the Navy, 2300 E Street NW, Washington,
D.C., 20372-5300 |
