Diagnosing and treating cancer is complex. Patients need the experience and skills of several different medical professionals to receive the best treatment possible.  The Patient Navigator is a relatively new member of the oncology treatment team, but has developed into a vital role.

The concept of Patient navigation emerged in the early 1990’s.  It is a process by which an individual—a patient navigator—guides patients through and around barriers in the complex cancer care system to help ensure timely diagnosis and treatment.  The navigator insures the patient receives the right treatment, in the right place, at the right time.

The Role of Software in Patient Navigation

The Patient Navigator became such a vital member of the oncology team, many found themselves overwhelmed with the sheer number of patients and details for which they were responsible.  In response, the Cleveland Clinic developed proprietary software to assist the navigation process, considered by many to be  best-in-class application of its kind.  However, this outstanding technology was isolated within the Clinic’s operating system.

A New App for Cancer Navigation

In 2017, Family Care Path licensed the underlying technology from the Cleveland Clinic and developed an application named CancerNAV.  CancerNAV assists the Patient Navigator  by tracking key milestones in each patient’s care and optimizing throughput.  Critical path treatment tasks are monitored and prioritized through alerts and reminders.  Best of all, it is available to the healthcare community at large so any provider can utilize this world-class application.

The CancerNAV application benefits patients by reducing their “time to treatment,” which is a known factor in improving outcomes.  CancerNAV also saves cost for the healthcare provider by allowing a Navigator to handle more patients, more effectively, which also improves patient retention.

Finally, the utilization of CancerNAV had a positive effect on job satisfaction for the Navigator, which is critically important to this vital role of the oncology team.

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