Article: Guadagnolo, B.A., Dohan, D, & Raich, P. (2011). Metrics for evaluating patient navigation during cancer diagnosis and treatment: Crafting a policy-relevant research agenda for patient navigation in cancer care. Cancer, 117(S15): 3563-3572.

Big Idea: The American Cancer Society convened a focus group of providers, navigators, and experts at the Patient Navigation Leadership Summit to review the evidence of patient navigation metrics during diagnosis and treatment.

Survey Says!: There are more robust patient navigation outcome metrics associated with navigation during the screening and early diagnostic phases of the care continuum. Metrics indicating true changes in patient outcomes during the treatment care continuum segment are lacking. The panel proposed numerous outcome metrics to help organizations better track the progress and efficacy of their patient navigation services.

Quotable: “Appropriate metrics and data sources must be defined that will allow researchers and administrators to determine if navigation can assist patients in managing the complexities of cancer care” (p. 3566).

“Although the published literature and systematic large-scale research on patient navigation continue to emerge [references], the vast majority of existing data showing improved cancer-related health outcomes with patient navigation involve programs that provide navigation during the screening and diagnostic resolution phases of early cancer management. Fewer studies examine the impact of patient navigation during cancer treatment itself” (p. 3566).

“Core metrics for evaluating patient navigation during cancer diagnosis and treatment should include those that are likely to be impacted by the patient navigation interaction and reflect improved access to cancer care, as well as the provision and completion of uninterrupted treatment” (p. 3572).

So What?: This article is one of many within the National Patient Navigation Leadership Summit (NPNLS): Measuring the Impact and Potential of Patient Navigation, Supplement to Cancer. If you work with patient navigation, you’re going to want to save that link because there are ten more free articles just as wonderful as this one you need to read. I am in the process of helping write a navigation strategic plan, and this article as well as the ten others have helped me capture meaningful evaluation outcomes – not just outputs – to help strengthen the plan and measure the value-added impact of navigation within my workplace. As we move away from tracking number of referrals, number of phone calls, and other counting outputs and move toward tracking outcomes such as reducing days between diagnosis and first treatment, adherence to recommended treatment guidelines, reducing unnecessary hospitalizations, and lengthening survival rates, this article helps frame those discussions in light of current evidence of patient navigation during the treatment phase, which is lacking. It is important for navigation programs to track meaningful metrics, proving navigation makes a difference for the patient and the healthcare system.