Contact
Calie Santana, MD
David A. Greenwald, MD
Vivek V. Gumaste, MD
Patient Navigator Program
When found early enough, colorectal cancer is preventable, treatable and beatable. The Montefiore-Einstein Colorectal Health Patient Navigator Program's mission is to significantly impact the prevalence of colorectal cancer in the Bronx community by ensuring that patients in need of a screening colonoscopy are properly assessed and scheduled to receive timely treatment and care.
The Program's staff "navigators" educate patients on what a screening colonoscopy is and how to prepare for it. Additionally, they assist patients in getting scheduled from their primary care physician's office directly to their screening appointment, troubleshooting along the way as necessary.
Integration of the Colonoscopy Service Navigator Program into the Electronic Medical Record (EMR)
Under Montefiore Medical Center's Colonoscopy Service Navigator program, primary care physicians identify patients who are in need of screening or surveillance colonoscopies. Designated patient navigators and gastroenterology nurses then telephone patients and screen them for any medical comorbidity that may preclude scheduling a colonoscopy without a preceding appointment with a gastroenterologist.
Once it is verified that the patient qualifies for this direct scheduling, navigators assist in scheduling the procedure and educating the patient on the procedure and the preparation required. A reminder call is placed a few days in advance of the scheduled procedure to remind the patient, as well as to give directions and other needed assistance.
Integration of this initiative into Montefiore's EMR system starting in the Spring of 2012 significantly increased the rate of screening colonoscopies perform on eligible patients and the rate of complete documentation of colonoscopy results in the EMR.
Contact Info
Colonoscopy Service Navigator Program
(718) 920-7183
PatientNavigatorProgram@montefiore.org
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