The Midwest Cancer Alliance (MCA), the outreach network of The University of Kansas Cancer Center (KUCC), has partnered with the Academy of Oncology Nurse & Patient Navigators (AONN+) to enhance the skills of MCA-member oncology nurse navigators. The KUCC is the only National Cancer Institute–designated cancer center in Kansas, and the MCA links member hospitals, medical professionals, and their patients with KUCC research and services. The MCA network includes more than 60 patient and nurse navigators across the Midwest (Figure).
The AONN+ and MCA will offer membership in the academy to clinical nurse and patient navigators in the MCA system as well as oncology nurse navigator certification as part of the MCA’s ongoing commitment to providing navigation services within their institutions and in rural communities. The AONN+ and MCA will collaborate on developing navigation education and resources for MCA navigators.
Executives from both organizations expressed their enthusiasm for the new partnership. “We are delighted to have the navigators from the Midwest Cancer Alliance join us,” said Lillie D. Shockney, RN, BS, MAS, ONN-CG, Co-Founder and Program Director, AONN+. And MCA Executive Director, Hope Krebill, MSW, BSN, RN, said, “Our partnership with AONN is a great addition to the tools and resources Midwest Cancer Alliance offers our medical colleagues.”
“The growth of navigation as a profession is exciting and gratifying. To bring yet another institution on board is further evidence that navigation tactics help institutions reach their goals of providing value-based, effective patient care,” said AONN+’s Danelle Johnston, MSN, RN, ONN-CG, OCN, Chief Nursing Officer and Senior Director of Strategic Planning and Initiatives.