Some military treatment facilities in the Washington D.C., area offer virtual appointments for patients being treated for chronic pain. Walter Reed National Military Medical Center www.wrnmmc.capmed.mil in Bethesda Maryland, can now video conference with patients who are in hospitals and clinics at Marine Corps Base Quantico in Virginia www.auantico.marines.mil, Fort Belvoir www.belvoir.army.mil in Virginia, Joint Base Andrews, in Maryland www.jba.af.mil, and at the Pentagon www.defense.gov.
“Virtual healthcare has really a unique opportunity to help with pain and decrease our opioid burden, not only in the military but also in civilian sectors,” said Dr. Christopher Spevak, Director of the Opioid Safety Program for the National Capital Region in the Washington D.C area.
Dr. Spevak also said, “Telehealth is especially important to use for patients who use opioids to manage chronic pain because it gives them easier access to doctors who specialize in pain management and can offer alternative modalities.”
As explained by Dr. Spevak, the telehealth option currently offered to the clinics in D.C area, requires providers to be credentialed in the facilities where the patient is sitting for their video consultation in addition to the hospital where the doctor is located.
Retired Army Lt. Col. Bruce Moler has firsthand experience using this telepain option. The former infantryman has a chronic pain condition for a back problem that started 20 years ago. At first, his back pain wasn’t so bad, but the problem got progressively worse as he aged, and he had to increase his pain medications.
Moler lives near Quantico and has been going there for telemedicine appointments for almost two years, and tells others that he recommends the service to others in the D.C area and reports he is a happy customer.