The Academy of Oncology Nurse & Patient Navigators (AONN+) announces the publication of standards for use in the professional delivery of oncology care. With input from many major oncology-focused professional organizations, this new release provides guidance for the application of best practices and is relevant to a range of care providers and settings.
The Professional Oncology Navigation Task Force is pleased to announce the release of the Oncology Navigation Standards of Professional Practice. These standards were created to provide clinical oncology nurse navigators, social work navigators, and patient navigators with clear information regarding best practices in the provision of professional care. This includes the knowledge and skills all professional navigators should possess to deliver high-quality, competent, and ethical services to people impacted by cancer. These standards also provide benchmarks for use by healthcare employers and information for policy and decision makers, health professionals, and the public to understand the role of professional oncology navigators. These standards are intended to provide guidance and may be applied differently, as appropriate, in diverse settings.
The professional organizations responsible for the creation of the Oncology Navigation Standards for Professional Practice include the Academy of Oncology Nurse & Patient Navigators (AONN+), Association of Oncology Social Work, Association of Pediatric Hematology/Oncology Nurses, and Oncology Nursing Society. Patient organizations involved in developing this document include the Cancer Support Community and the Smith Center for Healing and the Arts. The foundational steps taken by the Biden Cancer Initiative Working Group on Patient Navigation also led to the creation of this document. We would like to thank all individuals and organizations who reviewed and commented on this document.
“For too long, patients have been on their own after a cancer diagnosis. In the Cancer Moonshot and the Biden Cancer Initiative, the need for help navigating the cancer care system was top of mind in every meeting we held with patients and their caregivers. The Professional Oncology Navigation Task Force has done every cancer patient a true service by delineating the standards we expect in patient navigators, by putting patients at the center of those standards and by laying out a true 360-degree holistic view of the people we call patients,” said Greg Simon, former Executive Director, White House Cancer Moonshot, and former President, Biden Cancer Initiative.
With the recent announcement that President Joe Biden is renewing the Cancer Moonshot initiative, the publication of these standards is timely for the professional practice of oncology navigation. Cancer does not stop and neither does the commitment and professional growth of navigators.
Read more about the Oncology Navigation Standards for Professional Practice at https://bit.ly/3JHqhhg.
About the Academy of Oncology Nurse & Patient Navigators, Inc. (AONN+)
The Academy of Oncology Nurse & Patient Navigators, Inc. (AONN+), is the largest national specialty organization dedicated to improving patient care and quality of life by defining, enhancing, and promoting the role of oncology nurse and patient navigators. The organization, which has more than 8900 members, was founded in 2009 to provide a network for all professionals involved and interested in patient navigation and survivorship care services in order to better manage the complexities of the cancer treatment process. www.aonnonline.org.
