Franciscan Health Cancer Center

Franciscan Health Cancer Center Indianapolis
Indianapolis, Indiana

A Nurse Navigator-Led Community-Based Cardio-Oncology Clinic

Hear how this program grew from manual chart mining to identify at-risk patients into a program sustained by robust referrals from providers looking for the specialized expertise of cardio-oncologists. Today Franciscan Health Cancer Center Indianapolis manages the cardio-toxic side effects of more than 1,000 cancer patients. Working in collaboration with medical oncologists and other members of the multidisciplinary team, the cardio-oncology team helps keep oncology patients in treatment and works to improve patient quality of life. Gain additional perspective from an educational video that chronicles a patient’s journey through the clinic.

To hear this ACCC Innovator Award session on-demand, please visit the ACCC eLearning portal.

A Nurse Navigator Led Community-Based Cardio-Oncology Clinic

How can hospital administration be convinced to hire a new navigator when there is no budget for the position? The answer is simple: Following oncologic guidelines for monitoring patients for cardiovascular toxicity via echocardiography increased the number of echocardiograms performed at the hospital. Despite the potential for additional revenue, the new position was a leap of faith for the hospital because stakeholders did not know whether the volumes predicted would come to fruition because there were no other cardio-oncology programs to model ours after. In the end, the belief that a significant improvement could be made in patient care largely drove the decision to hire.
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