- DHA Director Navy Vice Adm. Darin Via is positioning medical planning, data and continuous learning as core components of future combat support
- The agency proposed a Joint Warfighter Health System covering mental health, TBI and infectious disease
- Learn more about the agency’s modernization priorities at the 2026 Healthcare Summit on Dec. 3
Defense Health Agency Director Navy Vice Adm. Darin Via is emphasizing data-driven planning and continuous learning as the military medical enterprise prepares for increasingly complex combat environments, the agency reported Tuesday.
As the Defense Health Agency advances data-driven medical planning, AI and new approaches to warfighter health, the 2026 Healthcare Summit on Dec. 3 will explore how modernization can strengthen readiness—and highlight contract opportunities supporting the future of military healthcare. Sign up now to secure your seat.
How Is DHA Using the Joint Medical Planning Tool for Future Combat Planning?
Speaking at a recent conference for military healthcare professionals, Via emphasized the need to identify ways to return injured service members to duty more quickly while improving access to care, referrals and measurable readiness outcomes.
He highlighted the Joint Medical Planning Tool, or JMPT, a computer-based simulation as an important capability for supporting casualty forecasting, treatment and evacuation decisions, and supply planning for future conflicts.
“To achieve our North Star, DHA should be synchronized and data-driven to deliver decisive warfighter support,” Via said.
In an August request for information, DHA sought industry input on modernizing its Joint Operational Medical Information System, or JOMIS, medical planning and modeling capabilities. The effort would address limitations in existing tools, including the Joint Medical Planning Tool and Medical Planners Toolkit, and provide more dynamic ways to model medical demand and operational resources.
What Role Does the Joint Trauma System Play in DHA’s Approach?
DHA is also working to improve its support for combatant commands and casualty receiving facilities by establishing medical supply requirements, using planning tools to estimate casualty volumes and preparing additional space inside military hospitals and clinics.
Via identified the Joint Trauma System as a model for how DHA can use operational experience and data to foster continuous improvement in military medicine.
The tool provides a framework for establishing common trauma care practices and using clinical data and lessons learned to improve care across the joint force.
“Military medicine faces a more complex future than it did during the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan,” Via said. “The enemy has changed the tactics on us, and we have to adapt.”.
What Is the Planned Joint Warfighter Health System?
DHA intends to apply lessons from the Joint Trauma System beyond battlefield trauma by establishing a Joint Warfighter Health System.
Via said the new system will use the same continuous, data-driven process improvement approach to address a broader range of conditions affecting military readiness.
“We’re going to use those same models to drive mental health, TBI (traumatic brain injury), and infectious disease,” he added.
