Patient Navigation Launched, Guysborough Antigonish Strait
CANCER CARE N.S.--Patient Navigation Launched, Guysborough Antigonish Strait
Cancer Care Nova Scotia joined three health districts to launch its Patient Navigation program today, Feb. 25. The program will enhance cancer care for Nova Scotians.
Guysborough Antigonish Strait is one of three health authorities that will participate in the one-year pilot. A patient navigator has been hired by the district, with funding from Cancer Care Nova Scotia and the Department of Health.
The navigator will work closely with family doctors, cancer specialists and cancer patients and their families to improve access to and co-ordination of cancer services. This will include all aspects of cancer treatment, followup and support services.
"Patients have told us that going through cancer treatment is often like trying to find their way through a maze," said Dr. Andrew Padmos, commissioner, Cancer Care Nova Scotia. "Patient navigation will help guide patients and their families through that maze. We believe that family physicians and other community- based specialists are key to ensuring that patients receive quality cancer care.
"Through patient navigation, we will support the work of family physicians and others, while ensuring that cancer patients and their families have the information, knowledge and support they need as they journey through the cancer system."
"Navigation is already making a huge difference," said oncologist Dr. Len Reyno. "Since the patient navigator has been in place, my patients are better prepared for their appointments.
"They have the information they need about community and financial supports. They have a better understanding of their disease and how it is affecting them. They have thought through the questions they need answered in order to make the right decisions for them. Because of the patient navigator, I'm able to focus my time on patient care and treatment issues."
"This Patient Navigation pilot project is a good example of how community-based health care can personalize a system that sometimes seems intimidating and impersonal," said Health Minister Jamie Muir. "People needing health care want to know someone in their own community is there to help them, and a program like this makes that possible."
"Patient Navigation will bridge the range of cancer services available in our district by working with the family doctor and cancer specialists to make sure that our patients are well cared for," said Kevin MacDonald, chief executive officer, Guysborough Antigonish Strait Health Authority. "This is a welcome addition to both the health care team and cancer patients in what is often an overwhelming time in their lives."
Patient Navigation is also being piloted in Pictou County and Southwest Nova district health authorities. The program is the result of extensive consultation with cancer patients, family members, health professionals, community organizations and volunteers in Nova Scotia. They indicated a need for more care from the time of diagnosis, more timely information and more involvement by the family doctor. These recommendations formed the foundation for Patient Navigation.
The program will be evaluated after one year and will be modified, based on lessons learned, before being implemented across the province.
Cancer Care Nova Scotia is a program of the Department of Health, created to reduce the burden of cancer on individuals, families, and the health-care system through prevention, screening, education and research.