Point32Health encourages providers who care for our members to offer patient navigation services for breast and cervical cancer screening in those patients who may benefit from them, in alignment with guidance from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the Health Resources and Services Administration’s Women’s Preventive Services Guidelines.
As you are aware, women’s preventive health care such as early screening and detection are crucial to improving outcomes in patients at risk for breast and cervical cancer — and are provided with no member cost sharing in accordance with the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. In addition to screening, the subsequent follow-up (if necessary) is equally vital to ensure that patients adhere to the relevant recommendations. Patient navigation services maximize the likelihood of patients’ success in this adherence, as many patients are unlikely to take the level of initiative necessary or don’t know where to begin and could benefit from additional advocacy by the various providers coordinating their care.
Patient navigation offers a personalized approach to care that may include support services such as assistance with understanding the health care system, language translation, transportation, and connecting to social services. These services can be tailored to patients’ unique needs, and can be conducted either in-person, virtually, or through a hybrid model.