The Academy of Oncology Nurse & Patient Navigators (AONN+) is pleased to announce the AONN+ CATCH Initiative! Short for Catching & Addressing Threats to Care & Health, the AONN+ CATCH Initiative is a reporting system to track and acknowledge the positive outcomes of navigation interventions. Each month, AONN+ will recognize a navigator for making a “Catch.”
A CATCH is a navigation win where the navigator caught an issue and intervened to correct it.
Visit AONNonline.org/catch to submit a CATCH.
The CATCH for September 2022 is awarded to Stephanie Hoopes, BSN, RN, OCN, ONN-CG, a survivorship nurse navigator at Prisma Health Cancer Institute in Greenville, SC.
Background: Ms Hoopes’ 43-year-old male patient was seen in the genetics management clinic for an MLH+1 gene mutation (Lynch syndrome).
The Incident: Ms Hoopes and the nurse practitioner noticed that the patient had not received a screening colonoscopy after the identification of the gene mutation.
The CATCH (Intervention): Ms Hoopes and the nurse practitioner ordered a screening colonoscopy, referred him to gastroenterology for an expedited consultation, and provided education to the patient on the rationale for the colonoscopy and consultation.
Outcome: The patient’s colonoscopy revealed foci of moderately differentiated adenocarcinoma. The navigator’s identification of a high-risk patient and quick intervention and collaboration with the genetics management team resulted in the patient’s referral to appropriate screening tests and a cancer diagnosis. The adenocarcinoma was caught at a much earlier stage than if the patient had waited until the recommended screening age of 45 years.
This Catch aligns with several of the AONN+ Standardized Metrics and the Oncology Navigation Standards or Professional Practice outlined above.
Navigators are often the frontline defense for patients, serving as their patient advocate and guiding them through the continuum of care. As illustrated by this CATCH, navigation has a role not only when a cancer has been diagnosed but also in prevention and screening, which further impacts the patient’s overall experience, quality of life, and outcome.
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