Evaluation of Peace Corps/Medical Clearance System

We recommend that the OMS develop and distribute a list of Veterans Administration Hospitals across the nation that are positively responding to screening Peace Corps applicants based on applicant feedback.

We recommend that the Pre-Service Unit post the VA Hospital Authorization Form online next to the list of applicant endorsed VA Hospitals.

We recommend that the OMS with consultation from the 50+ Initiative Working Group and the Office of Strategic Information, Research, and Planning analyze what screening resources may be required by the agency to ensure the success of the 50+ Initiative, such as additional screening nurses or screening assistants.

We recommend that the Screening Unit Manager be mentored by the Division Chief of Medical Clearances at the State Department to provide expertise and assistance to the OMS Screening Unit and QI Unit for the purposes of the following: • Streamlining the MCS. • Developing performance measures. • Developing and implementing staff feedback mechanisms. • Developing and implementing applicant feedback mechanisms. • Developing, updating, and enforcing guidelines, SOPs, and policies. • Implementing improvements to the MCS.

We recommend that the OMS Screening Team meet with the State Department’s Screening Division to learn how the State Department decreased medical screening time through a combination of technological improvements, systems streamlining, and quality management and to determine the following: • The hardware required and communications methodology for requiring applicants to fax medical documentation instead of mailing, • The hardware and system structure involved in transitioning to a system of scanning, accessing, reviewing and storing electronic medical files, and • Whether the eMed document management system or a similar system would work for Peace Corps Medical Screening.