Design Your Digital Program

Use these resources to learn the hallmarks of mature patient navigation programs and set initial priorities for digitally enabled patient navigation programming. You’ll be able to engage health system decision-makers in comprehensive program design with efficient resource utilization to support your patients.

Digitally Enabled Patient Navigation Program Objectives

Maturity Level

Objectives

Initial priorities for patient navigation programming

*Adapted from UNC Health Cancer Care Central Navigation Strategic Plan

Hallmarks of mature programming

Other Helpful Resources To Support Program Design: Academy of Oncology Nurse and Patient Navigation Professional Standards

Program Considerations

Comprehensive, digitally enabled patient navigation starts with a thoughtful program design. Engage with health system decision-makers on the dimensions below to design your comprehensive digital program.

Map patient and care partner interactions

Patient Eligibility and Support: Patient intake, scheduling with the oncology care team, eligibility for patient navigation services, and Social Determinants of Health (SDOH) screening & assessment

Integration of Clinical and Non-Clinical Navigation: Initiating visit with the oncology clinical care team and patient consent to enable billing for Principal Care Management (PCM) and Principal Illness Navigation (PIN) services

Digitally Enabled Patient Navigation Intervention, Management, and Monitoring: Outreach, referrals, assistance, support, and resources

Align workforce, capital, and technology infrastructure with patient navigation priorities

Workforce: Human capital needs, including the costs associated with training, turnover, and non-billable service provision

Systems: Digital health technology (EHR, ePROs, patient portal) acquisition and implementation process, including costs

Engage professional health system stakeholders

Central Navigation Team: Cancer patient navigator, financial advocate, clinical nurse navigator, clinical social work navigator

Clinical Care Team: Clinical nurse navigator, clinical social work navigator, and cancer and non-cancer care providers

Additional Key Personnel: Community health and service workers, patient care partners, chaplains, executive decision-makers, research coordinators, health information technologists, and health information managers

Design to comply with external and internal rules and requirements

External: ONC’s HTI-1 Final Rule, CMS CY 2024 Medicare PFS Final Rule, ACS National Navigation Roundtable, and PONT Oncology Navigation Standards for Professional Practice

Internal: Remote work policies, approval and documentation processes, staff training, and requirements for patient education materials

Use the Blueprint

The Digitally Enabled Patient Navigation Blueprint features several resources that you can use to adapt existing technology and leverage reimbursement pathways to support patient navigation – from pre-treatment to active treatment to survivorship.

Click through the three sections of the Blueprint below for related resources.

Highlights core objectives for patient navigators to make a business case to decision-makers showcasing the value of a digitally enabled patient navigation program.

Covers approaches patient navigators and health information technologists can take to adapt existing EHR platforms and develop EHR-enabled workflows to fit their patient navigation needs.

Features a digitally enabled workflow, recommended approaches for digital distress screening, and billing information for patient and financial navigators who need information on digital patient triage, navigation interventions, and reimbursement pathways.