Abstract C137: Action-based modeling for national Indigenous cancer care partnerships: Patient navigation services, health policy, and sustainability

Abstract

Cancer-specific, Indigenous led patient navigation systems are often a gap for Indigenous communities. These communities often face greater cancer health disparities and increased mortality due to late-stage diagnoses. Early detection and navigation are key to life-saving treatment. This quality improvement study shares the foundations for implementation of an Indigenous/rural patient navigation program. The discussion shapes planning and evaluative efforts for the build out of a memorandum of understanding from an NCI-Designated cancer center’s Indigenous cancer service arm (Northeast) towards expansion to an Indigenous community-driven university-based Native American budget and policy institute (Southwest).  Program development centers Indigenous underpinnings of wampum agreements, Pueblo cane agreements, tribal sovereignty, and governance. Findings include translational modeling of Indigenous based cancer focused patient navigation successes, robust cross-training collaborations, inter-tribal resource building, incorporation of virtual patient navigation, grass-root partnerships, Indigenous-led community outreach, and health policy development.

Citation Format: Carmela M. Roybal, Rodney C. Haring. Action-based modeling for national Indigenous cancer care partnerships: Patient navigation services, health policy, and sustainability [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 16th AACR Conference on the Science of Cancer Health Disparities in Racial/Ethnic Minorities and the Medically Underserved; 2023 Sep 29-Oct 2;Orlando, FL. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev 2023;32(12 Suppl):Abstract nr C137.