VHA - National Diffusion Practices

Our Mission

Diffusion of Excellence nationally implements select Promising Practices which demonstrate high impact, replicability, stakeholder support, and cost effectiveness. Our team further supports efforts by assigning a Diffusion Specialist to each practice and provides resourcing for a three-year national implementation effort.

PRIDE in All Who Served
Reducing Health Disparities Among LGBTQ+

This program was developed as a resource for reducing healthcare disparities, which includes suicide risk. Additionally, this program focuses on overall wellness, increasing social connectedness, and empowering Veterans to engage in services related to their personal healthcare needs.

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Physical Therapy Embedded Within PACT
Increasing Access, Decreasing Wait Time

Embedding physical therapists in Primary Care facilitates same day examination and treatment for musculoskeletal conditions allowing for earlier intervention and frequently avoiding unnecessary medications, imaging and specialty referrals while keeping Primary Care appointment times available for Veterans requiring medical care.

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Hospital-Acquired Pneumonia Prevention by Engaging Nurses (HAPPEN)
Reducing Pneumonia Risk Through Oral Care

HAPPEN provides consistent oral care to hospitalized Veterans and long-term care residents cuts the risk of developing pneumonia in half.

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VIONE
Medication Optimization and Polypharmacy Reduction Initiative

A clinician and patient-friendly methodology - VIONE (Vital, Important, Optional, Not needed, Every medication has an indication) used by physicians, nurse practitioners, physician assistants, nurses, and pharmacists to address polypharmacy risk.

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News and Events

On June 4th, Diffusion of Excellence program and iNET investee, PRIDE in All Who Served, presented at the Academy Health Conference about implementation of the program. They also won the best abstract award for the Dissemination, Implementation, and Impact. The LGBTQ+ Health Education Group was designed and refined using Human Centered Design principles at the Hampton VA Medical Center in 2016. Each one-hour session of the ten-week, manualized, closed group provides an opportunity to connect with other LGBTQ+ Veterans to build a peer support system while improving LGBTQ+ patient health literacy.

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Secretary of Veterans Affairs, Denis McDonough, recently visited Sioux Falls VA where he recognized a member of the Primary Care Physical Therapy (PACT) team with a Challenge Coin, one of the highest honors within VA. PACT is one of Diffusion of Excellence's newest programs and allows Veterans to more readily access same day care for musculoskeletal, neurological, and pain complaints

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VIONE won the Calendar Year 2022 Quarter 1 National HeRO Award. VIONE is a medication management methodology that helps Veterans and providers identify, reduce, taper, or stop unnecessary, ineffective, or inappropriate medication. Developed by Dr. Saraswathy Battar at Central Arkansas Veterans Healthcare System, it has successfully impacted the lives of more than 77,000 Veterans by de-prescribing 168,000 medications. The National HeRO Award is the highest level of High Reliability Organization (HRO) recognition available within VHA and is reserved to honor employees who advance VHA’s journey to high reliability by demonstrating HRO principles in action.

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Oncology-certified nurse Tiniska (Jade) Brooks understood the potential long-term implications of delays in the diagnosis and treatment of colorectal cancer, which is the third leading cause of cancer-related deaths in the United States. Seeing a backlog in cancer treatments grow and screening rates dropping due to COVID-19, Brooks and her team revolutionized a text messaging capability into a customer Relationship Management System. Working with VHA IE Shark Tank Competition, Brooks piloted Cancer Prevention at your Fingertips: Empowering Veterans Through Mobile Applications. Using her program, nurses saved 47 hours of time and over $200,00 in just three months - while keeping up with the need for colonoscopy procedures to ensure colorectal cancer doesn’t go undetected.

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National Diffusion Practices

Discovering, Testing, and Scaling Promising Practices

Our Mission

12 National Diffusion Practices

National Diffusion Practices

760,000+ Veterans Impacted

Sustainment Rate

1,500+ Promising Practice Replications

Promising Practice Replications