A service or group of services the VA authorizes a community provider to perform to complete the consult order including the duration and number of visits that might be necessary. Some or all of the authorized services may need to be performed during any particular episode of care.
Back to topThe DST looks for fixed community care eligibility criteria based on the Mission Act using the enrollment system as the definitive source. That source identifies veterans with certain codes:
There is a community care policy and procedure that allows a VA provider to request the ability for a veteran to receive all care in the community based on that veterans best medical interest and this request must be approved by the Chief of Staff or their designee. Congress requests that VA providers consider: The nature or simplicity of the request to care, the need for an attendant, the frequency of the care, the timeliness of available appointments (VA or Community), and potential improvement in the continuity or quality of care.
Back to topThis refers to the average time it takes to drive from the veterans official residence as noted in the enrollment system, to the VA facility closest to the veteran that offers the service requested. This measurement uses our provider profile management system (PPMS) which a Microsoft-based product that utilizes Bing maps and its algorithm to determine the time to travel between the 2 ZIP Codes as determined over the past 30 days of estimates taken at the particular time the DST is run.
Back to topThis is measured as the average time, based on a rolling 30-day assessment, of the time an appointment is created to the date of the appointment itself. This is the method used for the access to care public facing website but does not reflect the eligibility for community care. Community care wait time eligibility is determined at the time of scheduling the appointment - not at the time of requesting it.
Back to topWhen this button is selected, the information captured on the DST dashboard will then be saved to the consult and available to be linked to the consult and displayed in the request for care section. Once the consult is accepted a DST ID number is used to capture the information gathered in the DST dashboard. Once the consult is signed, the actual information itself is displayed in the reason for request section of the consult using standard 3-digit codes and descriptions.
Back to topWhen this button is selected, the DST ID is placed on the consult in the request for care section. Once the consult is accepted a DST ID number is used to capture the information gathered in the DST dashboard. When the consult is signed, the actual information itself is displayed in the reason for request section of the consult using standard 3-digit codes and descriptions.
Back to topWhen this radio button is selected it will require a SEOC to be selected if the veteran ultimately opts in to community care. Because a SEOC is required on every consult that goes to community care, this allows the ordering provider to select the appropriate SEOC to match the consult/order that is being ordered at the time it is placed.
Additionally, it allows the creator of the consult and thus user of the DST to use information even if the veteran is a) Not ready to decide or b) Not present. This button then enables the provider to ask a team member to finish the opt in/out decision later while maintaining the integrity of the initial DST dashboard information.
Back to topIf the DST was initiated using an in-house consult or interfacility consult that needs to be, a community care consult based on the veterans opt in decision that was documented on the DST, the provider would click Save before linking the information from the DST onto the consult, the provider would go to the order a consult drop-down and select the appropriate community care consult, ensure the correct CID, urgency and diagnosis are in place then click the link information to the consult pop-up button.
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