Health Dictionary
Reliable, easy-to-read patient information on common medical conditions — written in plain language, free of jargon, and grounded in current evidence. Browse the most frequent diagnoses, understand what they mean for everyday life, and learn which steps and questions help you have a focused conversation with your doctor.
Patient navigators
Introduction
Patient navigation is “the process of helping patients to effectively and efficiently use the health care system when faced with one or more of these challenges: (1) choosing, understanding, and using health coverage or applying for assistance when uninsured; (2) choosing, using, and understanding different types of health providers and services; (3) making treatment decisions; and (4) managing care received by multiple providers.”[1]
Patient navigation may improve HbA1c control in patients with uncontrolled diabetes mellitus. According to a retrospective cohort study with pre and post intervention periods, patient navigation through clinical and personal problems decreased HbA1c in patients with an A1c >8.5% by an average of 1.1% (p<0.001) and reduced no show rates by 9.8% (p<0.001) in the intervention group [2].
References
- ↑ Anonymous (2026), Patient navigators (English). Medical Subject Headings. U.S. National Library of Medicine.
- ↑ Horný M, Glover W, Gupte G, Saraswat A, Vimalananda V, Rosenzweig J (2017). “Patient navigation to improve diabetes outpatient care at a safety-net hospital: a retrospective cohort study”. BMC Health Serv Res. 17 (1): 759. doi:10.1186/s12913-017-2700-7. PMC 5699176. PMID 29162073.