Implementing an oncology navigation program significantly decreased time to treatment in patients with pancreatic malignancy.
An “Oncology navigation program” is a fancy phrase for a nurse (s) tasked with helping the pancreatic cancer patient get his/her treatment in a timely fashion around his/her hospital.
I will be direct. Pancreatic cancer is one of the most serious types of cancer there is. Studies show that your treatment is more successful, on average, if you are treated at a hosptial with more experience treating pancreatic cancer patients. Chances are that your conventional treatment (FDA approved) will include surgery, radiation and maybe even chemotherapy.
Your challenge is that an experienced hospital will be big, busy and complicated. My point is that, to some degree you are at cross purposes. The big complicate hospital is better for your care yet getting that care can take an advanced degree.
As a long-term cancer survivor myself (different cancer), I have spent a great deal of time and effort over my past 25 years in hospitals for various reasons. Don’t misunderstand me, large, modern hospitals are marvels of modern society. But please believe me when I tell you that these places are complicated places to navigate.
The solution to the pancreatic cancer patient’s navigation challenges is an oncology navigation program. If you have been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, you may be better served to find 1) a pancreatic cancer center of excellence with 2) an Oncology Navigation system for your cancer within that center for excellence.
Have you been diangosed with panreatic cancer? Scroll down the page, post a question or comment and I will reply to you ASAP.
Thank you,
David Emerson
- Cancer Survivor
- Cancer Coach
- Director PeopleBeatingCancer
Recommended Reading:
“Background-Care of pancreatic cancer patients has become increasingly complex, which has led to delays in the initiation of therapy. Nurse navigators have been added to care teams, in part, to ameliorate this delay. This study investigated the difference in time from first oncology visit to first treatment date in patients with any pancreatic malignancy before and after the addition of an Oncology Navigator.
Methods- A single-institution database of patients with any pancreatic neoplasm evaluated by a provider in radiation, medical, or surgical oncology between 1 October 2015 and 30 September 2017 was analyzed. After 1 October 2016, an Oncology Navigator met patients at their initial visit and coordinated care throughout treatment. The cohort was divided into two groups: patients evaluated prior to the implementation of an Oncology Navigator and patients evaluated after implementation. Patient demographics and time from first visit to first intervention were compared.
Results-Overall, 147 patients with a new diagnosis of pancreatic neoplasm were evaluated; 57 patients were seen prior to the start of the Oncology Navigator program and 79 were evaluated after the navigation program was implemented. On univariate analysis, time from first contact by any provider to intervention was 46 days prior to oncology navigation and 26 days after implementation of oncology navigation (p = 0.005). While controlling for other covariates, employment of the Oncology Navigator decreased the time from first contact by any provider to intervention by almost 16 days (p = 0.009).
Conclusions-Implementing an oncology navigation program significantly decreased time to treatment in patients with pancreatic malignancy…”
“Implementing a new recovery pathway speeds time to next treatment for pancreatic cancer patients by 15 days, without increasing complication rates…
Perhaps most significantly, reducing recovery time means that patients with pancreatic cancer can transition more quickly to the next phase of treatment. On average, the shorter stay was associated with reducing time to adjuvant therapy by 15 days (51 days with 5-day, versus 66 days with 7-day recovery).”
