Remote patient monitoring can improve outcomes for cancer patients

Minnesota Oncology is pleased to be the first oncology practice in Minnesota to implement remote patient monitoring with the launch of Navigating Cancer’s Health Tracker system today.

A ground-breaking study from Dr. Ethan Basch in 2017 showed that remote monitoring helped patients stay on therapy longer, reduced emergency department visits and hospitalizations, and improved quality of life and overall survival.1

Minnesota Oncology is committed to delivering patient-centered, compassionate care in community cancer centers. Its mission to use the best practice, state-of the-art therapies and research has made it the premier provider of care for patients with cancer and blood disorders in the region.

As the practice has grown to more than 100 providers across 12 clinic locations in the Twin Cities area, the need for a technology solution to deliver proactive, comprehensive care to patients and incorporate patient-reported outcomes into the care model has emerged.

Navigating Cancer’s Health Tracker gives Minnesota Oncology an integrated workflow tool to centralize triage and provide a consistent symptom management experience for all their patients. In addition to incoming patient calls, the platform’s remote monitoring capabilities will ensure the care team can provide assistance right when patients need it.

Since 2015, Health Tracker has been helping patients stay connected to their care team between office visits. Create a custom schedule with your patients to send regular check-in messages via text or email. Health Tracker lets you monitor oral medication adherence and side effects. When patients report side effects, a triage ticket will automatically be created so they receive timely assistance. Remote patient monitoring allows practices to track and quickly address any patient issues. Health Tracker was developed with leading cancer centers and has been tested and approved by actual cancer patients.

“We are looking to the future and this is an important step in caring for patients whether or not they are physically in the clinic,” said Paul Thurmes, MD, Medical Director at Minnesota Oncology. “We are confident that standardizing the care we provide and prompting patients to communicate with us will result in better outcomes and reduced costs.”

View the Health Tracker brochure here.

Watch a video on Health Tracker here.

1 Basch E, Deal AM, Dueck AC, Scher HI, Kris MG, Hudis C, Schrag D. Overall Survival Results of a Trial Assessing Patient-Reported Outcomes for Symptom Monitoring During Routine Cancer Treatment. JAMA. 2017;318(2):197-198.

2  CancerCare. CancerCare Patient Access and Engagement Report. New York: CancerCare; 2016.

About Navigating Cancer
Navigating Cancer was founded in 2008 as the result of two healthcare and technology veterans coming together to fill a critical gap in oncology care: a better patient experience. Driven by a shared passion to leverage technology in the healthcare space, the co-founders set out to create the first patient-centered platform for oncology. Today, our Navigating Care platform supports over one million patients and thousands of cancer care providers nationwide to lower costs, improve patient satisfaction and drive better outcomes. https://www.navigatingcancer.com/

About Minnesota Oncology
Minnesota Oncology includes specialists in medical oncology, radiation oncology, hematology, gynecologic oncology, thoracic and plastic surgery – as well as on-site laboratory services and access to its specialty oncology care pharmacy. With over 100 providers – physicians, physician assistants and certified nurse practitioners – now practicing in 12 clinic locations across the greater Twin Cities metro area, Minnesota Oncology is the largest independent oncology practice in the state of Minnesota. https://mnoncology.com/