Toward bridging gaps in patient navigation: A study on the adoption of artificial intelligence technologies
Open accessAbstract
Background: Patient navigators, whose value has become increasingly apparent, still face significant challenges, including a lack of support, funding, and recognition. These challenges have been exacerbated in the wake of COVID‐19 pandemic. Methods: This study explored the potential use of artificial intelligence (AI) in patient navigation. Data were collected through structured surveys and individual interviews with patient navigators from a variety of institutions and professional backgrounds. The data were analyzed to understand the current state of patient navigation, identify existing gaps, and suggest best practices for the future. Results: The findings showed that patient navigators (a) have diverse backgrounds and responsibilities, (b) lack technology support for their work, (c) are at risk for burnout, with the extent varying based on the level of technical support received, and (d) report significant overlap between current barriers and those that could potentially be addressed with AI‐driven technologies. Conclusion: A novel intervention, that is enabled by AI and other technologies and tailored to individual needs, has the potential to reduce burnout, increase capacity, and help ensure the sustainability of patient navigation and other areas of healthcare. By addressing the specific needs of individual patients, this type of intervention could help improve the overall effectiveness of patient navigation and support the long‐term sustainability of the role.
The claims and statistics of this paper haven’t been checked yet.
Run the check — free, no account needed. It reads the open-access text and checks the sources it cites.
Integrity signals
Registry
Cites
Statistics
Claims the paper makes
The claims and statistics of this paper haven’t been checked yet.
Run the check — free, no account needed. It reads the open-access text and checks the sources it cites.
Claims other papers make about this one
Each is checked against this paper’s own text: does it say what the citing paper says it does?
Nurse navigators frequently lack formal recognition of their specialized skillset.
“However, navigators frequently lack institutional support, sustainable funding, and formal recognition of their specialized skillset.2”
From Empathic and agentic artificial intelligence in nursing: perspectives on a human-centered framework for cancer care navigation in the United States of America (2026) · cites this paper as [2]
Section 1.5 describes patient navigators and their programs as “under supported,” “underfunded,” and “undervalued.” That supports the general concern about recognition, but it does not specifically establish that nurse navigators frequently lack formal recognition of their specialized skillset. (LLM, conf=0.85)
Experimental — accuracy not yet measuredNurse navigators frequently lack sustainable funding.
“However, navigators frequently lack institutional support, sustainable funding, and formal recognition of their specialized skillset.2”
From Empathic and agentic artificial intelligence in nursing: perspectives on a human-centered framework for cancer care navigation in the United States of America (2026) · cites this paper as [2]
Section 1.5 (page unavailable) says patient navigators and their programs are underfunded, supporting the funding concern. It does not establish that nurse navigators specifically frequently lack sustainable funding; the Results section describes a broader mix of navigation professionals. (LLM, conf=0.84)
Experimental — accuracy not yet measuredNurse navigators frequently lack institutional support.
“However, navigators frequently lack institutional support, sustainable funding, and formal recognition of their specialized skillset.2”
From Empathic and agentic artificial intelligence in nursing: perspectives on a human-centered framework for cancer care navigation in the United States of America (2026) · cites this paper as [2]
Section 1.5 says patient navigators and their programs are under-supported, underfunded, and undervalued. The Discussion identifies a lack of institutional support as a possible reason for limited technology use. Neither passage establishes how frequently nurse navigators specifically lack institutional support, nor does it address sustainable funding or formal recognition of their specialized skills. (LLM, conf=0.82)
Experimental — accuracy not yet measured
Self-check
Percentages, sums and reported differences re-computed from the paper’s own numbers.
The self-check needs the paper’s full text.
Cites
No references could be resolved yet.
Research works printed but not linked: 17
- Shockney LD. The evolution of breast cancer navigation and survivorship care. Breast J. 2015;21(1):104-10. https://doi. org/10.1111/tbj.12353 · DOI
- Freeman HP, Rodriguez RL. History and principles of patient navigation. Cancer. 2011;117(15 Suppl):3539-42. https://doi. org/10.1002/cncr.26262 282 - MEDICINE ADVANCES · DOI · Paper page
- Pratt-Chapman ML, Silber R, Tang J, Le PTD. Implementa- tion factors for patient navigation program success: a quali- tative study. Implement Sci Commun. 2021;2(1):141. https:// doi.org/10.1186/s43058-021-00248-0 · DOI
- Nature Editorial Board. The 'war on cancer' isn't yet won. Na- ture. 2022. https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-022- 00109-3
- A summary of the American Cancer Society Report to the Nation: cancer in the poor. CA Cancer J Clin. 1989;39(5):263- 5. https://doi.org/10.3322/canjclin.39.5.263 · DOI
- Freeman HP. Cancer in the economically disadvantaged. Cancer. 1989;64(1 Suppl):324-34; discussion 342-345. https:// doi.org/10.1002/1097-0142(19890701)64:1þ<324:aid- cncr2820641334>3.0.co;2-b · DOI
- Nash D, Azeez S, Vlahov D, Schori M. Evaluation of an intervention to increase screening colonoscopy in an urban public hospital setting. J Urban Health. 2006;83(2):231-43. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11524-006-9029-6 · DOI
- Chen F, Mercado C, Yermilov I, Puig M, Ko CY, Kahn KL, et al. Improving breast cancer quality of care with the use of patient navigators. Am Surg. 2010;76(10):1043-6. https://doi. org/10.1177/000313481007601003 · DOI
- Jandorf L, Gutierrez Y, Lopez J, Christie J, Itzkowitz SH. Use of a patient Navigator to increase colorectal cancer screening in an urban neighborhood health clinic. J Urban Health. 2005;82(2):216-24. https://doi.org/10.1093/jurban/ jti046 · DOI
- Natale-Pereira A, Enard KR, Nevarez L, Jones LA. The role of patient navigators in eliminating health disparities. Cancer. 2011;117(15 Suppl):3543-52. https://doi.org/10.1002/cncr. 26264 · DOI
- Freeman HP. Patient navigation: a community based strategy to reduce cancer disparities. J Urban Health. 2006;83(2):139- 41. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11524-006-9030-0 · DOI
- Trichopoulos D. The unequal burden of cancer. BMJ. 2000;320(7230):321. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.320.7230.321 · DOI
- Institute of Medicine (US) Committee on Cancer Research Among Minorities and the Medically Underserved. The Na- tional Academies Collection: reports funded by National In- stitutes of Health. In: Haynes MA, Smedley BD, editors. The unequal burden of cancer: an assessment of NIH research and programs for ethnic minorities and the medically un- derserved. Washington: National Academies Press; 1999. PMID: 20845564.
- Freund KM, Battaglia TA, Calhoun E, Dudley DJ, Fiscella K, Paskett E, et al. National Cancer Institute Patient Navi- gation Research Program: methods, protocol, and measures. Cancer. 2008;113(12):3391-9. https://doi.org/10.1002/cncr. 23960 · DOI
- Oncology Nursing Society; Association of Oncology Social Work; National Association of Social Workers. Oncology Nursing Society, the Association of Oncology Social Work, and the National Association of Social Workers Joint Position on the Role of Oncology Nursing and Oncology So- cial Work in Patient Navigation. Oncol Nurs Forum. 2010; 37(3): 251-2.
- Duong D, Agraviador D, Cariou C, George M, Karanja M, Kashima K, et al. Results of the George Washington Uni- versity cancer center's comprehensive cancer control cancer communication mentorship program and implications for future practice. Cancer Causes Control. 2022;33(7):995-1003. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10552-022-01586-7 · DOI
- Chen F, Lan T, Chen Z, Zhang R. Using AI for patient nav- igation during COVID-19 pandemic: a case report. EC Nurs Healthc. 2023;5(7):1-7.
Cited by
Sorted by citations
Girdwood, T., Kheirinejad, S., Kheirkhah, P., White, B., Davis, R., Schwartz, D., & Shaban-Nejad, A. (2026) · ESMO Real World Data and Digital Oncology · doi:10.1016/j.esmorw.2026.100694 · Cited by 3 · see citing works
- Authors
- Chen, F., Lan, T., Liang, J., & Zhang, R.
- Affiliations
- COVID‐19 Research Consortium The Hopkins Club for Innovation and Entrepreneurship INC Baltimore Maryland USA
- New York University (US)
- Simon Fraser University (CA)
- LINKSciences LLC Baltimore Maryland USA
- Corresponding author
- Chen, Fenghao
- Venue
- Medicine Advances
- Publisher
- Wiley
- Published
- 2024-09
- Volume
- 2
- Issue
- 3
- Pages
- 274-283
- ISSN
- 2834-4391 (ISSN-L)
- 2834-4405
- OpenAlex
- W4402457958
- Cited by
- 8
- References
- 0
- Citations by year
- 2026: 3 · 2025: 4 · 2024: 1
- FWCI
- 0.76
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- diamond
- doi.org
- Licence
- Locations
- Medicine Advances (publishedVersion, cc-by-nc-nd)
- DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals) (submittedVersion)
- Topics
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Health Informatics › Artificial Intelligence in Healthcare and Education
- Health Sciences › Health Professions › General Health Professions › Nursing Roles and Practices
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Oncology › Cancer survivorship and care
- Keywords
- patient navigation, artificial intelligence
About these checks
Registry, retraction, Cites and statistics results are computed, not judged, with one exception: a printed reference that no index lists is read once by a model before it counts as a citation error. Claims are extracted by a model and kept only when their quote appears verbatim in the text; each cited source is then checked, with a model’s help, for whether it says what the claim relies on. Those verdicts can be wrong — read the claim’s quote and the cited source before relying on one.
Statistics and arithmetic are recomputed, not judged.
Confidence bands are shown only for fields calibrated on our annotated test set. None is calibrated yet, so no band is shown.
What counts as a claim ›How we measure confidence ›How we check this ›
Are you an author, or do you see a problem with this page? Request a review
