BENEFITS AND CHALLENGES ASSOCIATED WITH THE IMPLEMENTATION OF NAVIGATION PROGRAMS IN CANCER CENTERS: AN INTEGRATIVE REVIEW

Abstract

The increasing complexity of cancer treatments, combined with the fragmentation of the health system, exposes patients to a series of challenges that can compromise quality of life and treatment outcomes. In this context, patient navigation emerges as a promising strategy to optimize care, ensuring continuity of care and the best possible experience for patients throughout the oncological pathway. This integrative review aims to analyze the scientific evidence on the effectiveness of patient navigation in the oncology context, identifying the main benefits and challenges of implementation in oncology centers. To this end, an integrative literature review was carried out, with the selection of descriptors and keywords based on the PICO strategy. The search and selection process of primary studies was carried out in the Virtual Health Library (VHL), including the following databases: Medical Literature Analysis and Retrieval System Online (MEDLINE), Latin American and Caribbean Literature on Health Sciences (LILACS) and Nursing Database (BDENF). The search returned 2,019 publications, of which 5 were eligible for analysis. Despite the challenges in implementing navigation in cancer centers, the promising results justify the effort. By optimizing the patient journey, navigation provides a more humanized experience, improves the quality of life of patients and their families, and contributes to the efficiency of the health system, enabling the identification and correction of failures and the optimization of the use of resources.