What the Rural Hospital Knows, and the Network the Military Already Built
BLUF – The article argues that struggling rural hospitals are adopting networked care models—shared specialty services, telehealth, distributed staffing, and coordinated referral systems—that mirror capabilities the Military Health System has already built across its global network of military treatment facilities, operational units, and civilian partners. For military healthcare leaders, the key takeaway is that the MHS may possess underutilized expertise in delivering care across geographically dispersed populations, suggesting opportunities to leverage military healthcare network practices to improve access, readiness, and resilience while informing broader healthcare transformation efforts.