Jan. 23, 2009
Q: I have numerous people within my chain of command that are inquiring about the medical centers with the base. Concerns are Exceptional Family Member (EFM) children with severe medical issues and how hospitals can accommodate for the conditions. These concerns are associated with mainly pulmonary and cardiology conditions. A response or contact information to one of these centers would be greatly appreciated.

A: The responsibility of U.S. Naval Hospital (USNH) Yokosuka pediatric providers is to provide health care supervision to infants, children and adolescents, monitor their growth and development and address their acute and chronic needs. A common misconception about the hospital is that it is a naval medical center. In fact, it is a forward-deployed, level III medical treatment facility. For that reason, the hospital does not have pediatric specialists and is not equipped to provide medical care to patients with cardiac or pulmonary conditions that require specialty care. To ensure members are not transferred to this area with medical conditions that exceed the capabilities of USNH Yokosuka, stateside military treatment facilities provide overseas suitability screenings, a mechanism to identify patients with special medical or educational needs. This calls for primary care managers to screen active duty members with overseas orders and their dependents prior to departing the U.S. If any medical or educational condition is identified, the hospital is notified and determines whether or not it can support the special medical and/ or educational needs of that family member. Additionally, the EFM Program assists Sailors by addressing the special needs of their exceptional family members during the assignment process. The primary goal of this program is to ensure that special needs can be met at a new assignment location. If a patient is already in Yokosuka and is found to need specialty care, he or she will be referred to an area that has the appropriate facility and level of care (usually within the U.S.), required to met the member’s special needs. To learn more about the Exceptional Family Member Program, please visit the Web site: http://www.npc.navy.mil/CommandSupp...ilyMember.