Patient Navigation to Enhance Access to Care for Underserved Patients with a Suspicion or Diagnosis of Cancer

Background Interventions aimed at improving access to timely cancer care for patients in low‐ and middle‐income countries (LMIC) are urgently needed. We aimed to evaluate a patient navigation (PN) program to reduce referral time to cancer centers for underserved patients with a suspicion or diagnosis of cancer at a public general hospital in Mexico City. Materials and Methods From January 2016 to March 2017, consecutive patients aged >18 years with a suspicion or diagnosis of cancer seen at Ajusco Medio General Hospital in Mexico City who required referral to a specialized center for diagnosis or treatment were enrolled. A patient navigator assisted patients with scheduling, completing paperwork, obtaining results in a timely manner, transportation, and addressing other barriers to care. The primary outcome was the proportion of patients who obtained a specialized consultation at a cancer center within the first 3 months after enrollment. Results Seventy patients (median age 54, range 19–85) participated in this study. Ninety‐six percent (n = 67) identified >1 barrier to cancer care access. The most commonly reported barriers to health care access were financial burden (n = 50) and fear (n = 37). Median time to referral was 7 days (range 0–49), and time to specialist appointment was 27 days (range 1–97). Ninety‐one percent of patients successfully obtained appointments at cancer centers in 18 岁的患者。患者导航员协助患者制定日程安排、完成文书工作、及时获取结果、转运以及处理医护方面的其他障碍。主要结果为在加入研究后的前 3 个月内在癌症中心获得专业化咨询的患者的比例。 结果。70 名患者(中位年龄为 54 岁，范围介于 19–85 岁之间)参加了本次研究。96% 的患者 (n = 67) 确认了 >1 项获取癌症医护服务的障碍。在获取医护服务方面，最常报告的障碍为经济负担 (n = 50) 和害怕 (n = 37)。转诊的中位时间为 7 天(范围介于 0–49 天)，专家预约的时间为