Naval Health Clinic Cherry Point (NHCCP) patients using Secure Messaging by RelayHealth, must now send secure messages to their Medical Homeport (MHP) team using a new web address, https://mil.relayhealth.com.

The change became effective Jan. 29, and the new URL replaces the old address in order to meet Department of Defense cybersecurity standards.

Secure Messaging by RelayHealth is just one of the advantages of enrolling with a NHCCP primary care manager (PCM) within the clinic's Medical Home Port Team. It allows patients to ask health care questions about non-urgent symptoms, request test and lab results, and schedule future appointments. In some cases, Secure Messaging by RelayHealth can help patients avoid unnecessary office visits.

When a patient submits a secure message to his or her health care team, they will often receive an initial response within eight hours.

"Secure Messaging by Relay Health is a great way for patients to interact with their health care providers," said NHCCP Relay Health Program Manager Lt. Christina Pinkston. "Sixty-six percent of enrolled NHC Cherry point patients are currently signed up for RelayHealth, and we're seeing more of our patients using it every day as it is becoming the communication choice for our beneficiaries. Our staff loves it as well, as it allows us to resolve many less serious issues without the patient having to come see us."

Since 2009, Secure Messaging by RelayHealth has provided patient engagement and interoperable secure messaging solutions to the Military Health System. These solutions support the move to a more connected and patient-centric model of care, and improving overall patient satisfaction through connectivity solutions is a top priority at NHCCP.

The switch to the new address should be seamless as patients won't need to change any of their personal information. Those using the old website will be flagged by the system and automatically routed to the new website.

Named in honor of Medal of Honor recipient, Pharmacist's Mate 2nd Class William D. Halyburton, NHCCP provides high-quality patient care to more than 33,000 active-duty members and Department of Defense beneficiaries. In addition to outpatient surgical services, NHCCP offers Medical Home Port -- including family care and pediatrics -- dermatology, internal medicine, orthopedics, physical therapy, mental health, pharmacy services, preventive medicine, aviation medicine, and radiology to include MRIs.

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