Community cancer center administration and support for navigation services

Abstract

Objectives: To address the value of patient navigation (PN) to a community cancer center and suggest ways to measure PN outcomes to justify it as a critical component of cancer care.

Data sources: Literature review and unpublished data from the DC Citywide Patient Navigation Network.

Conclusion: Economic challenges in health care necessitate justification and appropriate utilization of all specialties and roles in cancer care. Demonstrating the value of PN programs is critical for sustaining these programs in community cancer centers. Having a clear business plan helps to define appropriate return-on-investment measures and an evaluation plan is important to assess program impact.

Implications for nursing practice: Nurses play a key role in working with administrators to define value metrics, track these measures, and report the results. Nurses should also seek out training and resources to enhance knowledge and skills for navigating patients.