MS Corner - MS Centers of Excellence

MS treatment through the VA is centered around two MS Centers of Excellence with support clinics throughout the country.  The MS Center of Excellence – East is located in Baltimore Maryland, part of the VA Maryland Health Care System.  The Center covers VISN 1-11, which includes most of the country east of the Mississippi River. 

The MS Center of Excellence – West is located in Seattle, Washington, part of the Puget Sound Health Care System.  The Center covers VISN 12-23 and includes the Rocky Mountain region.  The Centers of Excellence operate under the hub and spoke care system.  Support clinics (the spokes) are located throughout the country and serve veterans that do not live near the Centers of Excellence.  There are two support clinics within the MSCPVA four state region – one at the Denver VA Medical Center and another in Salt Lake City, Utah.  These two support clinics work under the MS Center of Excellence – West.

The Centers of Excellence perform four core functions:

• Clinical Care
• Education and Training
• Research and Development
• Informatics and Telemedicine

In addition to clinical care, the Centers of Excellence conduct, disseminate and apply research relevant to veterans with MS.  They specifically use pre-clinical research for novel therapies and pilot clinical trials.  The Centers also work with VA healthcare providers nationally to educate and train on the latest practices in treating MS.  A post-doctoral fellowship training program works to develop expertise in MS care.

The Centers are great resources specifically for veterans.  They produce a quarterly newsletter available at http://www4.va.gov/MS/Newsletters.asp, and conduct a free monthly educational conference call.  The call discusses a variety of MS topics and encourages veteran participation.  The call occurs the second Monday of each month at 6pm MT (next call scheduled for March 8, 2010).  Call 1-800-767-1750 and enter the code 43157# when prompted.

For more information about the VA MS Centers of Excellence please visit www4.va.gov/MS.