Navigation & Survivorship News
You have been there from the start; through thick and thin, navigating your patient through what felt like shark-infested waters for him. He has completed his acute treatment. Now he will be seen every 6 months and you will not be caring for him anymore. What happens?
Thank you navigators for creating an exciting and energetic time at the seventh annual Academy of Oncology & Patient Navigators (AONN+) conference.
All of the team members on the cancer care team are critical to help patients meet their treatment and survivorship goals. The patient navigator can help the patient understand all of the roles on the health care team and what the patient and their loved ones can expect from each person.
A newly diagnosed patient becomes dependent on us very quickly. Actually they bond fast with most of the members of their oncology treatment team. Navigators in particular serve as a life line for them as they go on this onerous journey of cancer treatment.
How reliable is the health information that bombards you in emails and snail mail daily? Is it trustworthy? Do you find yourself reading and have a reactive thought like, “Really? Can this be true?”
The work of patient navigators can be complex, chaotic, and at times, confusing. Cancer care is constantly evolving, which means that patient needs and challenges cannot always be solved easily. Patient navigators must be comfortable with ambiguity and should work to advocate for and utilize resources and services that best fit patient needs.
To everyone who just attended our 7th annual AONN+ conference, thank you for joining us in Las Vegas! We trust that you learned a lot from our multidisciplinary speakers, networked with one another, and had some fun while you were there. We sincerely hope you were able to take home some tools, best practices, or different approaches to use in your workplace.
I am more than excited about the launch of the official ONN certification! It is my hope that those who successfully passed this exam that was taken at the AONN+ Annual Conference in Las Vegas will share the news with others and wear their certification pin with pride!
The first gathering for the AONN+ Central Texas Oncology Local Navigator Network (LNN) held in October was a great success! Thank you to Andrea Shaw, St. David’s Navigator, who performed a tremendous job coordinating the network!
Patient navigators should work with colleagues to ensure a professional environment that fosters a community of respect, dignity, diversity, ethical integrity, and trust.
