Cancer Care Tools Improve Patient Care in Thunder Bay

THUNDER BAY – Health News – Cancer Care Ontaro developed Diagnostic Assessment Programs (DAPs)  to improve the diagnostic experience for patients.  A DAP is a hospital-based program, specific to a particular type of cancer, that offers patients a “one-stop shop” during their diagnostic jouney.  DAPs manage and coordinate the entire process of a person’s diagnostic care, from testing to a diagnosis. It includes tracking appointments and test results and remembers all the care providers a patient interacts with. This coordination significantly improves access to quality healthcare in a timely manner.  The result is a patient journey through cancer diagnosis that is more continuous.

Wouldn’t it be nice to be ‘in the know’ as you go through your diagnostic journey?

Thunder Bay Regional Health Sciences Invites You

Patient and Family Centred Care is the primary focus at Thunder Bay Regional Health Sciences Centre (TBRHSC). Inviting patients to be more active in their care is one way of making care more patient-centred, and one way of doing this is the Diagnostic Assessment Program’s (DAP) Electronic Pathway Solution (EPS).

Bob Geddes, a patient in the lung DAP who used the EPS to help guide him through the diagnostic pathway of his care, says, “If people can know ahead of time about their appointments that is helpful. At one point, I had 39 appointments! So knowing when your appointments are is the most valuable part of the EPS, in my opinion.”

“The EPS is a web -based tool for lung and colorectal DAP patients. It is a secure patient portal that is designed to empower patients by providing access to their personal diagnostic information,” says Felicia Ulloa, DAP Lead in Prevention and Screening Services at TBRHSC. The EPS website information is given to patients by the Patient Navigators in the DAP. The navigators serve as a liaison between the healthcare teams and the patient.

When asked how patients can use the EPS website to better their care, Ulloa emphasized that, “The EPS lets patients see important information about their care in a timely way. This helps them to keep track of the important details during their diagnosis.” Some of the information patients are able to access includes:

• Appointment details;
• Diagnostic test results;
• A Diagnostic Pathway map which shows each step of the diagnostic process;
• Members of  their care team; and
• The ability to invite their friends and family to also use the website and follow along with them.

“Patients have expressed how important it is for them to have access to information such as test results and appointment details; having that information one click away is empowering and enhances patient and family centred care,” added Ulloa.

With programs and tools in place, like the DAP and EPS, patients are more connected to their care than ever before.   The EPS allows patients and families to be more involved in their diagnostic journey, eases their emotional stresses and makes the process as straightforward as possible.

Sarah Chow

Your donation to the Exceptional Cancer Care Campaign ensures that we have the best diagnostic equipment available for finding cancer so that patients have the best possible chance at surviving. Find out more or make a gift at healthsciencesfoundation.ca/ECC or call (807) 345-HOPE.