At Mary Bird Perkins Cancer Center, patients are at the heart of everything we do. Every decision, every program and every moment of care. Understanding a cancer journey can feel overwhelming and emotionally demanding, our patient navigation program is designed to strengthen the care experience and fulfill our mission to improve survivorship and lessen the burden of care—not only for patients, but also for the family members and friends who care for them.
Our patient navigators are skilled healthcare professionals (nurses, dieticians, social workers and counselors) who are 100% focused on helping patients, families and caregivers overcome barriers to cancer care. Mary Bird Perkins patient navigators assist with educating patients and their families to ensure they make the most informed and timely decisions about their cancer care, coordinate appointments and transportation, connect to community resources to address barriers such as financial assistance and food insecurity, provide nutrition and emotional counseling to promote healing, and more!
This type of personalized support is especially needed for patients and caregivers from underserved communities such as North Baton Rouge, which continue to experience disproportionately high cancer burdens. Through a $2 million Merck Foundation funded Alliance initiative, Mary Bird Perkins Cancer Center is working to ensuring cancer care equity for North Baton Rouge.
Through its Alliance Community Advisory Board, a collaborative group of influential community leaders who serve as a vital link between Mary Bird Perkins and the North Baton Rouge community, the Center has leveraged expertise to gain insight into navigating community needs, fostering trust and establishing program priorities. Over the past three years, these efforts have enabled more than 500 patients from North Baton Rouge to benefit from patient navigation services offered by Mary Bird Perkins and attributed to improved patient outcomes, including a 32% reduction in time between a patients’ diagnosis to treatment. This critical reduction demonstrates measurable progress toward equitable access to high-quality cancer care.
“Being a part of the Alliance grant has allowed me to directly affect the evolution of patient navigation services and access at Mary Bird Perkins,” said Courtney Hunt, Community Advisory Board member. “Our goal is to build trust and increase access to care for both patients and their caregivers in the North Baton Rouge community. The results clearly reflect this is happening in a big way.”
This work hits close to home for Hunt, who served as caregiver for her mother, Brenda, during her treatment for Non-Hodgkin lymphoma, a form of blood cancer. Brenda completed her radiation treatment at Mary Bird Perkins, ultimately ringing the celebration bell in July of 2018. Hunt said her mother serves as a great example of taking charge of your health. “She never missed an appointment!” Hunt said. Hunt and other family members made sure to be there with her during every step of her journey – driving her to and from appointments and helping to understand her treatment plan. Being there for support and as a second ear made a huge difference for my mom and me,” said Hunt.
Mary Bird Perkins is dedicated to making sure caregivers like Courtney feel seen and supported. Recently, the Center hosted a webinar specifically designed for caregivers that focused on the essential skills to manage the complexities of cancer care, resources to reduce caregiver burnout and improve their own well-being. In addition, access to a variety of support and survivorship services, which are designed to help alleviate the challenges caregivers and their loved one fighting cancer face every day, is provided through its patient navigation program. Hunt stated, “Through its Alliance efforts, Mary Bird Perkins is ensuring that not only patients receive the quality care and support needed, but caregivers are better equipped to manage care responsibilities, make decisions and maintain their own health.”
Patient navigation is a foundational component of effective oncology care delivery and Mary Bird Perkins’ patient navigators serve as partners and connectors to community to patients and caregivers, ensuring that no one has to go through a cancer journey alone. Strengthened through its Alliance grant, Mary Bird Perkins continues to help patients overcome barriers to timely, high-quality care while improving outcomes, equity and the overall care experience.
To learn more about our patient navigation program and how it supports caregivers, click here or call (225) 767-0847. For more information on our Alliance grant, click here
