The Department of Veterans Affairs' Innovation Ecosystem has been responsible for some of the agency's most promising health IT research, including using virtual reality platforms for both mental and physical health care. VA Innovation Specialist Caitlin Rawlins discusses how the technology is being used to help patients recover from PTSD and other anxiety-related conditions, as well as manage chronic pain.

In mid-September, FDA launched its new Office of Digital Transformation, which combines multiple technology portfolios like data, cybersecurity and IT to drive a unified approach to modernization. Vid Desai, the agency's recently appointed CIO and head of this new office, dives into how his role has evolved since joining FDA in 2019 and addresses the primary obstacles the new office will look to tackle moving into 2022.

The Department of Veterans Affairs has built one of America’s most comprehensive clinical healthcare data review projects with its Evidence Synthesis Program (ESP). Hear from ESP co-founder Dr. Mark Helfand on how the program has been instrumental in advancing treatment for a range of conditions, and has recently taken a forefront role in helping clinicians nationwide better manage COVID-19 emergency care and save lives amidst the pandemic.

As we continue our National Cancer Act 50th anniversary commemoration miniseries, we focus this episode on childhood cancer. The early fight against childhood cancer helped spur support for the National Cancer Act, and in the decades since NCI has been working to understand the unique conditions, challenges and treatments for childhood cancer.

COVID-19 has brought new challenges, including the direct public health response as well as secondary shakeups across the government, medical and socioeconomic landscapes. To keep the pandemic response from devolving, the Government Accountability Office has been providing oversight and working with agencies to ensure that COVID-19 and other public health challenges are handled as properly as possible. Its Health Care Director Mary Denigan-Macauley discusses what it's like to oversee federal health activities during a pandemic and how she's overcoming associated challenges.

The Food and Drug Administration is ramping up technology adoption, and prioritizing AI and data strategies to ensure safety of new interventions and medical devices, improve workflows and ultimately deliver on its public health mission. Arunan Skandarajah, an FDA Presidential Innovation Fellow who believes in the power of equitable digital tools, discusses how he is innovating FDA's regulatory processes to drive greater efficiencies.

This fourth episode in our miniseries commemorating the National Cancer Act's 50th anniversary highlights the progress the National Cancer Institute has made in cancer prevention. We talk to leaders in NCI's Division of Cancer Prevention about avoidance, screening and treatments, and vaccinations, and how precision medicine is impacting further research.

With a new data strategy, Department of Veterans Affairs Chief Data Officer Kshemendra Paul outlines the critical role data will have in some of the agency's largest efforts like electronic health record modernization, COVID and more. This means ensuring data is standardized and integrated across the agency to improve health care, evidence-based decisions and equity.

The Veterans Health Administration's Innovation Ecosystem (VHA IE) serves as a hub for novel ideas and health technology development. Four technology and data leaders within the group unpack how they are using a collaborative approach to create well-rounded solutions that keep veterans' needs at the forefront of the development process.

The Department of Veterans Affairs is supporting research conducted within its National Artificial Intelligence Institute (NAII) through collaborative tech sprints that use curated data sets to explore new predictive health care and diagnostic methods. Rafael Fricks, the lead coordinator of the NAII tech sprints, discusses how these projects are coordinated and their application to conditions ranging from kidney disease to PTSD treatment.

Learn more about the NAII at VA’s website (https://www.research.va.gov/naii/) and sign up for the VA’s AI newsletter (https://www.research.va.gov/naii/join.cfm) to stay informed of future tech sprints.