Improving Care Delivery to Patients Newly Diagnosed with Breast Cancer

Prior to 2020, patients newly diagnosed with breast cancer at Atrium Health Wake Forest Baptist's Comprehensive Cancer Center experienced high variability in the number of days it took to see a breast cancer provider. Scheduling was decentralized across the departments and rarely could multiple visits be coordinated to occur on the same day, within the same location. Addressing this issue required a coordinated, multidisciplinary approach that involved engaging the cancer center leadership across 3 treatment departments—medical, radiation, and surgical oncology—administration, physicians, advanced practice providers (APPs), patient navigation, genetic counseling, scheduling, imaging, lab, and pathology. The primary goals of the initiative were to transform patient experience and improve timeliness to care for every newly diagnosed patient. Guest: Hunter Hayes, MBA Associate Principal The Chartis Group   "Being able to get patients seen quickly; being able to retain patients for their full cancer treatment is incredibly important…competition is growing and being able to keep those patients and keep their experience positive is critical."   Read more in "Improving the Care of Patients Newly Diagnosed With Breast Cancer" coming in your Volume 38, Number 2, Oncology Issues.   Resources: Improving Cancer Care Teamwork: Five Patient-Centered Strategies to Strengthen Care Coordination Machine Learning and Predictive Analytics Solution Transforms Infusion Center Operations Location Technology Improves Efficiency, Safety & the Patient Experience Breast Care ACCESS Project