U.S. Deputy Surgeon General Briefed on Research at ERP’s AMSUS Poster Session      

Venkat Rao
Chief Scientist/ERP International

Scientists from ERP International, LLC (ERP), and Georgetown University School of Medicine presented preliminary research findings on an innovative mouthwash process for detecting viruses such as COVID and other pathogens during the 2023 Annual Meeting of the Association of Military Surgeons of the United States (AMSUS). ERP’s Feb. 15 poster session took place during the Feb. 12-15 conference at National Harbor, Md. The meeting provided a national forum for Federal health professionals from the U.S. Departments of Defense (DOD), Veteran Affairs, Health and Human Services, and Homeland Security to promote healthcare collaboration and learn about the latest medical research from around the globe.

NETWORKING AT AMSUS

This year’s annual meeting created an opportunity for ERP to network with military health services customers, the academic research community, and to engage strategic business partners and business associates involved in medical services delivery and research and development activities. ERP was honored to brief the Deputy United States Surgeon General Rear Admiral (RADM) Denise Hinton on research titled “Extremely Sensitive Saliva Testing for Viral Diseases,” during the poster session.

ERP has a legacy of providing staff support services to military medical treatment facilities and research support services for combat casualty care and the operational medicine research program. Military and other Federal medical and healthcare professionals at the AMSUS Annual Meeting are the primary customers supported by the ERP Health Solutions and Medical Research and Readiness practices.  Dr. Venkat Rao, Chief Scientist, and Rick Starrs, Vice President for Medical Research and Readiness, represented ERP at the annual meeting.

MEDICAL RESEARCH

ERP’s poster presentation reported on the preliminary results of collaborative research efforts of ApoH Technologies, LLC, with ERP International and Georgetown University School of Medicine on a highly sensitive pathogen detection platform developed by ApoH to detect SARS-CoV-2/Variants of Concern (VOCs) using mouthwash samples. The SARS-CoV2 virus, a strain of coronavirus that causes COVID-19, remains in circulation globally and requires a robust virus monitoring platform.

The ApoH detection platform uses a unique pre-analytical sample processing that improves the efficiency of pathogen detection in human, animal, and environmental samples by up to ten times. Studies are in progress to further simplify the saliva mouthwash sample processing protocols for use as an at-home test kit. The highly sensitive virus detection greatly improves monitoring of residual viral loads in recovering patients and for surveillance of virus at below-threshold levels circulating in the general population.

The highlight of ERP’s participation was the opportunity to brief Deputy United States Surgeon General RADM Hinton on early results of the innovative, highly sensitive mouthwash test to detect a wide range of viruses and bacteria, as well as other aspects of ERP’s healthcare and medical research practice.  RADM Hinton, who made significant contributions to the FDA during the COVID-19 pandemic prior to joining HHS, evinced keen interest in a technology solution that simplifies sample collection and use of mouthwash samples as opposed to the current invasive nasal sampling process.  Dr. Jean-Paul Gonzalez, Professor at Georgetown University who is a co-author and collaborator on the poster, provided RADM Hinton more details on the use of test kits for field-testing.

HEALTHCARE COLLABORATION

The organizing theme for the 2023 AMSUS Annual Meeting was, “Healthcare Collaboration: Meeting the Challenges of Today and Tomorrow.”  Stressing the need for more collaboration across the healthcare entities, the Military Health System (MHS) senior leadership panel focused on collaboration across and outside the MHS. MHS is no longer a standalone but is part of an ecosystem of inter-dependent organizations, which requires close collaboration across the lifecycle of medical research – from the lab to medical service delivery and ancillary support systems.

The panel identified key gaps in what health professionals are asked to do in deployed settings as opposed to their counterparts based in the continental United States. The panel stressed the need for better information systems to close the gap and enhance networks with civilian and private sector medical partnerships. A key discussion topic across the four-day meeting was on the need for mental and behavioral health issues, which has led both service members and veterans to commit suicide. DoD has embarked on a holistic approach using a broader set of medical intervention techniques, including psychological, biological, familial, societal, ethical, and spiritual dimensions of illness, health, and wellness.

The MHS Joint Trauma Registry represents the largest collection of military medical data in the world. The registry’s data offers an opportunity to change the practice of military medicine, driven by data, evidence-based practices. It opens the door to using more advanced approaches to diagnose and treat mental and behavioral health problems, and extensive application of telemedical technologies to supplement in-person care. To improve patient and trauma care, advanced medical technology offers service providers access to on-demand medical care. Extensive research and development work within the government laboratories and the private sector on wearable devices is revolutionizing how to leverage technology data and sophisticated artificial intelligence/machine learning (AI/ML) tools to better support the mental and behavioral health of service members.

Virtual healthcare within the MHS is on the ascent. For instance, DoD saw a dramatic rise in the use of telemedicine during the COVID-19 pandemic with calls to the Nurse Advice Line increasing in volume over 4,000 percent (a 400-times increase) in just two days in March 2020. Telemedical consultation increased by 70 percent and video visits by increased by 250 percent during this period. More and more data show patients prefer to use video consult with their provider. The Defense Health Agency (DHA) has a major focus on integrating telemedical services with in-person care both at domestic and international medical treatment facilities.  For instance, Army’s Virtually Integrated Patient Readiness and Remote Care Clinic (VIPRR) provides readiness and other exams to 8,000 units and provides 60,000 virtual medical appointments a year to service members.

Another key topic at the AMSUS meeting was the current state of Military Treatment Facilities (MTF) and the anticipated decisions to restructure, retain, or close facilities going forward.  Currently, a small number of MTFs receive a disproportionately large workload, requiring an optimization plan for efficient utilization of medical treatment and training infrastructure and staff resources. The annual meeting theme on healthcare collaboration applies mostly to optimizing care, leveraging technologies and training to support the current and future role of MTFs.

ERP appreciated the opportunity to participate in the AMSUS 2023 Annual Meeting and looks forward to continued engagement with the military health services and research community.

ERP International, LLC is a trusted provider of Digital Solutions and Health Solutions that supports clients in both government and commercial sectors. We provide comprehensive technology and business process transformation solutions to Health, Defense, National Security and Homeland Security agencies. ERP is appraised at CMMI DEV Maturity Level 5 and CMMI SVC Maturity Level 3 and is certified as compliant in the ISO 9001:2015 Quality Management Standard, ISO/IEC 20000-1:2011 Service Management System, and ISO 27001:2013 Information Security Management Standard. Founded in 2006, ERP is headquartered in Laurel, MD, and maintains satellite offices in Montgomery, AL, Reston VA, Huntsville, AL, and San Antonio, TX – plus project locations nationwide.

We are a recognized leader in leveraging our mature capabilities to build scalable, resilient, high performance business solutions and empowering organizations to deliver on the promises of excellence. We bring together brainpower, insightful research, quantitative benchmarking, innovation, maturely structured problem-solving methodologies, and hands-on experience to improve our clients’ business environments. Our thought leadership, based on practical and real-world experience, makes us a trustworthy partner. We improve our customers’ mission performance through our use of quantitatively managed processes to deliver maximized ROI outcomes and customer satisfaction. We are a cost conscious and competitively priced partner, delivering comprehensive solutions through people-focused practices. Our exceptional customer service rating ranks ERP in the top five percent of all companies receiving the independent D&B^® rating. Washington Technology and Inc. Magazine both previously ranked ERP among the fastest growing firms in the nation. ERP has also been named one of The Washington Post’s 2020, 2021 and 2022 Top Workplaces in the Washington, D.C. area.