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©2016 Advisory Board • All Rights Reserved • 33065 Get the resources to maximize your investment in navigation advisory.com/or/navigation Oncology Roundtable Question 1 Do you have clearly defined goals for your navigation program? Clarify the navigator role. Specify two to three goals for navigation at your organization and redefine the navigator role so it directly supports those objectives. Question 2 Are your navigators’ responsibilities aligned with the goals of your navigation program? Question 3 Does everyone in your organization, including executives and clinicians, understand the benefits of your navigation program? Question 5 Do you track the impact of navigation on your program’s revenues, costs, and quality of care? Question 6 Do you regularly evaluate the navigator role to ensure top-of- license practice? Define the program. Solicit feedback from patients and physicians to understand which services they value most and uncover the biggest opportunities to improve care. Track your program’s performance. Track revenues from patients attracted to and retained by the cancer program due to navigation. Optimize the navigator role. Perform a time study to assess how navigators spend their time and use those results to re-scope the role. Six questions cancer program leaders need to ask, and strategies to address each Do you know if you’re making the most of PATIENT NAVIGATION? To help patients manage the complexity of cancer care, virtually all cancer programs have invested in navigation. In fact, since 2008 Oncology Roundtable members have spent an estimated $1.2 billion in direct costs from employing navigators. * But many programs struggle to define goals for their navigation program, measure navigators’ productivity, and demonstrate the impact of navigation on costs and quality. Ensure that you’re maximizing your investment in navigation. See the questions below and resources for each at advisory.com/or/navigation. 2 Patient Navigation Assessment Yes No Does everyone in the organization, including executives, clinicians, and staff, know the goals Do cancer physicians consistently refer patients to your navigators? Is it easy for physicians and staff to refer patients to your navigators? Do referring physicians understand the navigation program and its goals? Do your navigators have relationships with local organizations (e.g., YMCA, American Cancer Society, Cancer Support Community) that provide other support services to cancer patients? Total: Yes No Are navigator responsibilities clearly delineated and communicated to other members of the Do you have standardized processes for identifying patients in need of navigation? When specific patient needs are identified that require specialized support (e.g., financial concerns, behavioral health needs), do your navigators know where and how to refer those Are there documentation and communication standards for all care team members? Do you use care coordination protocols for patients moving across settings of care (e.g., Total: 1 Page 1 Patient Navigation Assessment Instructions: Cancer program leaders should thoroughly evaluate their navigation programs on an annual basis to ensure they are meeting the needs of their patients, using navigators effectively, and demonstrating a return on investment. This assessment will help you evaluate your navigation program’s performance across six key steps for optimizing navigation. After completing the assessment, add up the number of “No’s” within each step to determine which is the greatest opportunity for improvement. Then, visit www.advisory.com/or/navigation to access the most relevant resources. Step 1: Define the Program Question Yes No Have you identified the top barriers to accessing cancer care in your community across the past 1-3 years? Have you solicited physician feedback to help inform (re)design of your navigation program? Do you routinely use process improvement to enhance cancer program operations? Does your navigation program have clear, operational, and measurable goals? Do the goals of your navigation program align with larger institutional goals? Total: Step 2: Define the Navigator Role Question Yes No Is your navigation model optimized to meet the goals of your program? Have you mapped program needs to navigator responsibilities? Do you have a current job description for your navigator(s)? Can your navigators articulate the goals of navigation? Can your navigators clearly explain the boundaries of their role? Total: * Estimate assumes 90% of Oncology Roundtable members have employed an average of two navigator FTEs since 2008 with an average annual salary of $65,000 per navigator. Are navigators’ responsibilities clearly delineated and communicated to other members of the care team? Secure support for your navigation program. Perform a simple calculation to determine how much time and money a navigator saves nurses and physicians by taking over non-treatment-related tasks. Integrate navigators with the broader care team. Identify how responsibilities are allocated across the team and make changes to eliminate unnecessary duplication, clarify responsibility, and improve top-of-license practice. Question 4
