Modern military health: A path towards operational readiness through asset visibility and interoperable systems

In today’s rapidly evolving operational environments, the Defense Health Agency faces mounting challenges in managing and modernizing the systems that support military health care—both at home and in the field. From maintaining visibility into life-saving equipment and pharmaceuticals to ensuring seamless data sharing between military and civilian health systems, the agency’s mission demands real-time insight, secure interoperability and unwavering operational readiness.

Yet, gaps remain. Disparate health IT systems, outdated logistics platforms, limited visibility into critical assets and fragmented data sharing all hinder the speed and precision of military health care delivery. These challenges—tied closely to issues such as cybersecurity, fraud, waste and abuse, and system inefficiencies—can result in delayed care, supply shortages and increased risk to both patients and providers.

The asset visibility challenge in defense health

Asset management in a defense health setting isn’t just about inventory it’s about ensuring that field hospitals, evacuation units and clinical centers have the right equipment, in the right place, at the right time. Current systems struggle with:

• Lack of real-time tracking of medical assets, from mobile surgical kits to refrigerated pharmaceuticals
• Inefficient lifecycle management of high-value medical equipment
• Inconsistent data integration between defense health and logistics systems
• Cyber vulnerabilities in medical device tracking and health IT platforms
• Fraud and waste risks stemming from inaccurate asset utilization and inventory reporting

CGI: Engineering support for operational readiness

With decades of experience supporting the Department of Defense, CGI is uniquely positioned to help the agency meet these challenges head-on. Our work on the Marine Corps Platform Integration Center (MCPIC) and total asset visibility solutions across federal logistics systems brings proven expertise to the mission. Through RFID-enabled automation, predictive analytics and secure system integration, CGI empowers defense agencies to modernize logistics and health systems in tandem.

Key capabilities include:

• RFID and IoT integration: Enabling real-time tracking of medical equipment, pharmaceuticals and supplies across global theaters of operation
• Total asset visibility: CGI’s data-driven approach ensures assets can be located, monitored and audited at any point in their lifecycle—enhancing security and reducing loss or misuse
• AI-powered insights: From predictive maintenance on critical medical equipment to anomaly detection that flags potential fraud or asset misuse, artificial intelligence and automation enable smarter, faster decisions
• Continuity of operations: Provides full operational capability in both connected and disconnected environments
• Interoperability engineering: CGI delivers the support needed to connect disparate health IT systems across the Department of Defense, federal health agencies, state and local governments, and civilian care networks—promoting continuity of care

Real-time operational medicine and medical evacuations

In the field—where seconds matter—real-time access to medical information and resources can be the difference between life and death. CGI’s solutions help ensure that:

• Operational medicine systems are equipped with the tools and data necessary to provide care in austere environments.
• Medical evacuation teams have up-to-the-minute data on patient status, available treatment assets and logistical support.
• Commanders and medics can access real-time dashboards that combine logistics, clinical and readiness data to support faster, informed decisions.

A path toward enhanced security and efficiency

Asset visibility isn’t just about logistics it’s a powerful lever for improving security, eliminating waste and increasing mission effectiveness. When combined with emerging technologies, total asset visibility can:

• Mitigate fraud and waste risks through accurate reporting and auditing of high-value medical assets
• Strengthen cybersecurity through better control and monitoring of device access and data flow
• Drive significant cost avoidance through automation, process efficiencies and reduced personnel requirements
• Improve health outcomes by reducing delays in care due to missing equipment or outdated systems

The mission ahead

As the Defense Health Agency continues its mission to deliver high-quality, integrated health services to military personnel and their families, it must prioritize modernization across both health IT and logistics systems. CGI stands ready to serve as a trusted engineering partner bringing a proven track record in federal logistics, health systems integration and emerging technologies to support the agency’s goals.

From real-time asset tracking to engineering interoperability between battlefield and base, CGI’s solutions are purpose-built to help achieve the operational readiness, security and quality of care our service members deserve.

Learn more about CGI's IT modernization efforts in health IT.