November 2019 Vol 10, No 11

The diagnosis of cancer evokes a life-threatening reaction that can immediately hinder the quality of life (QOL) of an individual and their family.

Breast cancer is a highly emotional diagnosis; patient experience should be monitored to limit emotional distress.

Studies on the impact of cancer on life goals are limited, and the majority of tools used were author developed, making it difficult to compare across studies.

Young women (20-39 years old) with a gynecologic oncology diagnosis have “increased anxiety, depression, and distress” when compared with older cancer survivors.

Over the course of 2 years, Saint Luke’s Hospital Koontz Center for Advanced Breast Cancer hosted 3 weekend-long therapeutic retreats for women with metastatic breast cancer and their significant others.

Each year 22,000 women are diagnosed with ovarian cancer (OC), over 15,000 die, and more than 200,000 live with the often devastating physical, emotional, and social impacts.

Annually, over 70,000 adolescents and young adults (AYAs) are diagnosed with cancer.

Tools that help to characterize patient acuity have been used in healthcare for decades and have proved successful as a means of determining staffing needs, improving patient care, and controlling costs.

Since the inception of navigation programs in 2001, a variety of programs have been developed across the country.

The financial burden associated with a cancer diagnosis and treatment is often referred to as financial toxicity.

The role of the breast nurse navigator (BNN) during the treatment phase of the care continuum involves educating patients and families and assisting them with overcoming barriers to care by linking them to appropriate resources.

Cancer is an extremely overwhelming diagnosis with multiple appointments and care team providers.

The American Cancer Society (ACS) recently completed a quality improvement program pilot designed to test the feasibility and effectiveness of coaching-based navigation among ACS lay navigators; 6 sites were selected for the pilot.

As navigation programs grow, orientation programs must support different learning styles of new navigators.

Multidisciplinary tumor boards (MTBs) provide an interdisciplinary approach for decision-making in cancer care.

The current approach to cancer care in South Africa is known to be fragmented, uncoordinated, and often unsupportive of individual patient needs.

In 2017, Saint Luke’s Hospital Koontz Center for Advanced Breast Cancer in Kansas City, MO, began hosting biannual weekend therapeutic retreats for women with metastatic breast cancer and their spouses or caretakers.

As evidence guides practice, it is essential for navigation programs to identify core metrics and standardize data collection to demonstrate program outcomes.

Limited literature exists in exploring the navigator’s point of view during a transition in management. A quality transition is vital for navigator’s identity, well-being, empowerment, satisfaction, and retention.

Positive employee engagement is essential for success within the workplace and has a profound impact on an organization’s overall performance.

Cancer care involves a multitude of healthcare professionals and treatment modalities.

There is limited literature available that compares nurse navigator (NN) roles in a single-facility model (SFM) and the role after transitioning to a multifacility model (MFM).

Timeliness of care is of vital importance in breast cancer treatment.

Optimizing patient care, treatment delivery, and data-capturing forms have proved to be effective tools.

Waiting for diagnosis for more than a week can increase anxiety and uncertainty for patients and families because a cancer diagnosis is viewed as a threat to future health and life.

Community Care Physicians (CCP) is a practice located in Upstate New York that comprises 430 providers and 30+ subspecialties.

In February 2019, to more fully support prostate cancer patients with sexual health and urinary recovery posttreatment, Sutter Medical Center Sacramento implemented a nurse navigator to facilitate patient participation in a survivorship support group and education around symptom management.

The value of staff development and continuing professional development for support staff (medical assistants, front desk staff, and new patient coordinators) in the oncology setting is often overlooked.

The program began with a general focus navigation model (breast, lung, gastrointestinal cancers), then transitioned to a breast navigation only model in March 2018 due to patient volumes and navigator bandwidth.

Healthcare disparities studies rely on socioeconomic factors to explain physical barriers, such as the inability to pay for services or transportation.