ACS Community Access to Resources Education and Support (ACS CARES)

American Cancer Society, Inc.

Status: Invitation-only

Conditions: Neoplasms

Treatments: Other: ACS CARES Student Navigation

Study type: Observational

Funder types: Other

Identifiers

NCT06285929

2013209-1

Details and patient eligibility

About

The goal of this study is to evaluate the pilot phase of ACS Cares to identify key implementation outcomes and assess effectiveness of the program to improve distress, enhance communication, and reduce missed appointments and healthcare utilization.

Full description

In 2023, the American Cancer Society (ACS) created a new program, ACS Cares, based on the Take the Fight experience and existing literature on non-clinical navigation. The goal of ACS Cares is to supplement existing navigation infrastructure to extend navigation services to a broader population of patients. This is accomplished through designating lower level, timely tasks to volunteers and allowing paid navigators to practice at the highest level of their license (e.g nurses proving symptom management, higher level coordination). The goal of this study is to evaluate the pilot phase of ACS Cares to identify key implementation outcomes and assess effectiveness of the program to improve distress, enhance communication, and reduce missed appointments and healthcare utilization.

Enrollment: 2,000 estimated patients

Sex: All

Volunteers: Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Inclusion criteria

• patients of health system's healthcare physician champions with a confirmed cancer diagnosis
• patients with a confirmed cancer diagnosis
• families of patients with a confirmed cancer diagnosis
• Caregivers of patients with a confirmed cancer diagnosis

Exclusion criteria

• patients, families and/or caregivers without a confirmed cancer diagnosis
• patients not receiving care from healthcare physician champions

Trial design

2,000 participants in 3 patient groups

Navigated patients

Description:

Student volunteer navigation support accessing barriers to care for patients, families and caregivers with a cancer diagnosis through a social determinants of health assessment and connecting with resources with an effort to eliminate barriers.

Treatment:

Other: ACS CARES Student Navigation

non-navigated patients

Description:

Patients, families and caregivers with a cancer diagnosis without the support of student volunteer navigation and serving as the baseline and control.

Student volunteers

Description:

Undergraduate or graduate students volunteering with ACS CARES program to provide navigation support to patients, families and caregivers with a cancer diagnosis.

Treatment:

Other: ACS CARES Student Navigation