Patient Navigation

Patient navigators guide patients through the health care system and help them overcome barriers that prevent them from getting the care they need.

Patient navigators are staff members who work with patients to overcome barriers and understand the medical system. Their support can help patients get the cancer screenings and follow-up care they need.

Patient barriers may include:

• Lack of transportation.
• Lack of care for children or elderly relatives.
• Not understanding why they should get screened.
• Speaking a different language.
• Mistrust of the health care system.
• Fear of finding out they have cancer or fear of the screening procedures.

How to Create a Patient Navigation System

• Identify internal and external partners—like clinics or community-based organizations—to work with.
• Determine the type of patient navigator you need—for example, a social worker, community health worker, or nurse.
• Develop a process to monitor the system and track screenings and outcomes. Identify what data will be needed.
• Use the Patient Navigation Barriers and Outcomes Toolexternal icon developed by George Washington University as a guide.
• Review the New Hampshire Colorectal Cancer Screening Program’s replication manual to learn about an effective model.

Questions to ask:

• Who will supervise your patient navigators?
• How will navigation be delivered—for example, in person, electronically, or by telephone?
• Where will patient navigators be located—for example, within your health system or clinic or at a partner’s location?

How to Support a Patient Navigation System

Identify the resources you’ll need to:

• Hire, train, and supervise the patient navigators.
• Provide technology to the navigators.
• Make sure patients receive high-quality support.

Look for ways to reduce costs:

• Look for grants from the federal government, private foundations, state health departments, philanthropic organizations, academic institutions, and medical societies.
• Share costs with other programs in your organization or other clinics that use navigators.

Remember that the money saved by reducing the number of patients who cancel appointments at the last minute or don’t show up may offset the cost of the new system. For more ideas, see the Paying for Cancer Screening Navigation Tool Kit.external icon