FY26 O4 and O5 Promotion Board Convening Orders and Promotion Opportunities
PERS just released the FY26 O4 and O5 promotion board convening orders. They can be found at the bottom of this post, but here are the promotion opportunities from page 2. Here is O4:
Here is O5:
A Message from the Acting Assistant Secretary of Defense for Health Affairs
Colleagues,
As spring reveals herself in nature’s annual rite of renewal, I hope this note finds you well and filled with the spirit of optimism that the season brings.
After attending our organization’s annual “family reunion” in Cleveland last week—better known as the MHS Conference—I’ve returned invigorated, with a renewed sense of pride and excitement. The theme, “The Future of Military Medicine: Integrated, Innovative, Ready,” perfectly captures this pivotal moment in the Military Health System. The plenary and breakout sessions rose to the occasion, brimming with ideas to enhance our support to the warfighter through clinical care, research, and technological advancement. At the same time, we continue to invest in workforce wellbeing, forge new partnerships, and strengthen existing ones.
Lieutenant Commander Dan Cnossen, Navy SEAL and seven-time Paralympic medalist, inspired us with a powerful reminder of our raison d’être. Dr. Scott Steele, President of Cleveland Clinic and recently retired Army combat surgeon, reaffirmed our core values—Quality, Safety, and Patient Experience—while emphasizing the critical need for high-complexity case volume. Mr. Jay Hurst, PTDO Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness, opened the week with his unequivocal support for the MHS, saying “our medical providers and our medical support staff are the best people in the world.”
If you were unable to attend the conference, I encourage you to watch the recorded sessions that will be available on the conference website within the next two weeks and check out the articles and videos posted in the news room on health.mil, including one on our “top guns” of health care — our annual MHS award winners! Very impressive!
Across military medicine, the past few weeks have been fast-paced and full of accomplishments. We were proud to learn that 73% of DoD hospitals received the prestigious “A” grade for Patient Safety from the Leapfrog Group—more than double last year’s rate of 43%, and well above the national average of 32% among participating hospitals. Congratulations to the team at Landstuhl Regional Medical Center for earning designation as a German Level 1 trauma center.
Our multilateral partnership strategy continues to expand in both scope and relevance to our readiness mission. From the DAD-R&E team’s work in Denver with the VA on prosthetic access innovation, to the DHA-VA collaboration identifying over 10 sites for enhanced partnerships across enlisted and officer roles, momentum is building. The 48th Medical Group at Lakenheath, England signed six contracts with the United Kingdom National Health Service to enable U.S. European Command personnel to work within NHS hospitals. Meanwhile, the Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, continues advancing toward burn unit certification in partnership with Johns Hopkins.
These are just a few highlights of the remarkable integration and innovation taking place across the MHS in support of readiness—but our work is far from over.
The coming weeks will be critical. As part of a zero-based budgeting restructuring initiative, we’ll be making the case for sustaining vital resources, demonstrating how we bolster warfighting capability and enhance lethality. I was heartened to see the House Armed Services Committee hear our February call by adding $2 billion in direct support for military medicine in the current reconciliation bill. I will continue to advocate vigorously on your behalf—your dedication and accomplishments make my job not only easier, but a true privilege.
Thank you for making the Military Health System such an extraordinary team to represent.
Keep up the great work and thank you for all that you do. Don’t forget to enjoy the beauty of spring—and take a moment to stop and smell the flowers.
Very respectfully,
Steve
Stephen Ferrara, M.D.
Acting Assistant Secretary of Defense for Health Affairs
A Message from Acting DHA Director, Dr. David Smith: DHA’s Spring 2025 Hospital Safety Grades Are In!
Teammates,
The Defense Health Agency continues to partner with the Leapfrog Group – one of many avenues in which we transparently share our performance and compare ourselves to other hospitals and health systems across the country.
On May 1st, Leapfrog released their Spring 2025 Hospital Safety Grades. These grades are based on national standards for hospital safety and highlight risks that patients may face in a health care setting, including preventable medical errors and infections.
We show excellent performance measured against our peers, and against ourselves over time. In the Spring 2025 ratings, 32% of participating hospitals in the United States received the highest grade. Of the eligible military hospitals participating in the grading assessment, 73% received an “A” grade. And this 73% mark is up from 43% of our facilities receiving an “A” in Spring 2024.
The 16 military hospitals that received an “A” grade in Spring 2025 are:
· 81st Medical Group, Keesler Air Force Base, Mississippi
· 673d Medical Group, Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska
· Alexander T. Augusta Military Medical Center, Fort Belvoir, Virginia
· Blanchfield Army Community Hospital, Fort Campbell, Kentucky
· Brooke Army Medical Center, Fort Sam Houston, Texas
· Carl R. Darnall Army Medical Center, Fort Cavazos, Texas
· Eisenhower Army Medical Center, Fort Eisenhower, Georgia
· Evans Army Community Hospital, Fort Carson, Colorado
· Madigan Army Medical Center, Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Washington
· Martin Army Community Hospital, Fort Benning, Georgia
· Naval Medical Center Camp Lejeune, Camp Lejeune, North Carolina
· Naval Medical Center Portsmouth, Portsmouth, Virginia
· Naval Medical Center San Diego, San Diego, California
· Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, Bethesda, Maryland
· William Beaumont Army Medical Center, Fort Bliss, Texas
· U.S. Naval Hospital Guam, Guam
Our published article is available on dha.mil at: https://dha.mil/News/2025/05/01/16/50/Sixteen-Military-Hospitals-Receive-Leapfrogs-Highest-Safety-Grade.
As in the past, there are some participating MTFs who would have received an “A” grade, but the volume of care didn’t allow them to be publicly reported due to the minimum reporting requirements. Those hospitals include:
- Winn Army Community Hospital, Fort Stewart, Georgia
- U.S. Navy Hospital Rota, Spain
- Bayne-Jones Army Community Hospital, Fort Johnson, Louisiana
- 374th Medical Group, Yokota Air Base, Japan
- General L. Wood Army Community Hospital, Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri
- Irwin Army Community Hospital, Fort Irwin, California
- U.S. Naval Hospital Naples, Italy
- 88th Medical Group, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio
- Brian D. Allgood Army Community Hospital, Korea
- U.S. Naval Hospital Sigonella, Italy
There is a lot of effort at the MTF, DHN, and DHA Headquarters level to collect, validate and report this data – but it’s worth it. To our medical teams, to our leaders in the Department, and most of all – to our patients.
Thank you all for your commitment to high quality and safe care in the Military Health System…it shows every day!
V/R, Dave
Dr. David Smith, M.D.
Acting Director, Defense Health Agency
Navy Health of the Force Survey
Took me about 15 minutes to take:
Joel Schofer's Career Planning Blog 