A study published in Cancer examined if patient navigation impacted colonoscopy outcomes.
CDC Division of Cancer Prevention and Control's Ketra Rice, PhD, and colleagues compared 131 patients who underwent patient navigation in a screening or surveillance colonoscopy with 75 non-navigated patients.
Here's what they found.
1. Patients in the navigated group were 11.2 times more likely to complete colonoscopy than control patients.
2. Navigated patients were 5.9 times more likely to have adequate bowel preparation.
3. Navigated patients also missed no appointments compared to 15.6 percent of control patients. They were also 24.8 times more likely to not cancel within 24 hours of an appointment.
4. All the navigated patients received test results and had clinical guideline consistent follow-up recommendations compared to 82.4 percent of the control group.
Researchers concluded, "PN appears to be effective for improving colonoscopy screening completion and quality in the disparate populations most in need of intervention."