Premium
Evaluating the sustainability of patient navigation programs in oncology by length of existence, funding, and payment model participation
Author(s) -
Garfield Kathryn M.,
Franklin Elizabeth F.,
Battaglia Tracy A.,
Dwyer Andrea J.,
Freund Karen M.,
Wightman Patrick D.,
Rohan Elizabeth A.
Publication year - 2022
Publication title -
cancer
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 3.052
H-Index - 304
eISSN - 1097-0142
pISSN - 0008-543X
DOI - 10.1002/cncr.33932
Subject(s) - accreditation , sustainability , reimbursement , payment , medicine , data collection , work (physics) , medical education , family medicine , business , health care , finance , economic growth , engineering , ecology , biology , mechanical engineering , statistics , mathematics , economics
BACKGROUND For this study, the authors examined whether specific programmatic factors were associated with the sustainability of patient navigation programs. METHODS This cross‐sectional survey explored navigation programmatic factors associated with 3 measures of sustainability: 1) length of program existence, 2) reliance on sustainable funding, and 3) participation in alternative payment models. In total, 750 patient navigators or program administrators affiliated with oncology navigation programs in clinical‐based and community‐based settings completed the survey between April and July 2019. RESULTS Associations were observed between both accreditation and work setting and measures of program sustainability. Accredited programs and larger, more resourced clinical institutions were particularly likely to exhibit multiple measures of sustainability. The results also identified significant gaps at the programmatic level in data collection and reporting among navigation programs, but no association was observed between programmatic data collection/reporting and sustainability. CONCLUSIONS Navigation is not currently a reimbursable service and has historically been viewed as value‐added in oncology settings. Therefore, factors associated with sustainability are critical to understand how to build a framework for successful navigation programs within the current system and also to develop the case for potential reimbursement in the future.