The ECHO Program for Pain is an example of the Defense Health Agency’s (DHA} telementoring program. ECHO an educational program developed at the University of New Mexico in 2003 has expanded access to pain specialty care and is used globally.
DHA’s ECHO Program for Pain brings subject matter experts and healthcare providers together via videoconferencing to learn and share knowledge. The program uses a hub and spoke model with eight hubs located at strategic interdisciplinary pain clinics across the Military Health System (MHS).
Each hub at DHA’s ECHO program comprises specialty providers available for consultations and able to conduct learning sessions with providers. The ECHO Program works by having the care team at a local military hospital or clinic present a patient case where they need assistance from the specialist hub.
The care team reaches out to their clinic’s primary care pain champion. Then the provider presents the case to subject matter experts for guidance on how to manage the case. In addition to a variety of virtual telehealth options, DHA also offers telementoring options designed to connect patient care teams with specialists.
According to U.S. Air Force Lt. Col. Jennifer Varney, DHA Chief of the Pain Management Clinical Support Service, “The ECHO program is a core component of the Stepped Care Model for Pain Management that Patient Centered Medical Home teams use. The model uses evidence-based treatments to manage pain seeking to prevent acute pain from becoming chronic.