Cancer care pathways mapping and dissemination toolkit: lessons learnt from cancer services in NSW, Australia

Liz Norsa; Isaac Addo; Tim Shaw; Stephen Manley; Sandy Avery; Lisa Delaney; Nicole Rankin; Deborah McGregor; Kahren White

doi:10.1071/phrp33012302

RESEARCH ARTICLE (Open Access)

Cancer care pathways mapping and dissemination toolkit: lessons learnt from cancer services in NSW, Australia

Liz Norsa ^A ^* , Isaac Addo ^A , Tim Shaw ^B , Stephen Manley ^C , Sandy Avery ^D , Lisa Delaney ^C , Nicole Rankin ^B ^E , Deborah McGregor ^B and Kahren White ^A

+ Author Affiliations

- Author Affiliations

^A Cancer Institute NSW, Sydney, Australia

^B Faculty of Medicine and Health, University of Sydney, NSW, Australia

^C Northern NSW Local Health District, Lismore, Australia

^D South Western Sydney Local Health District, Liverpool, NSW, Australia

^E School of Population and Global Health, Faculty of Medicine, Dentistry and Health Sciences, University of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia

^* Correspondence to: elizabeth.norsa@health.nsw.gov.au

Public Health Research and Practice 33, e33012302 https://doi.org/10.17061/phrp33012302

Published: 13 September 2023

2023 © Norsa et al. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International Licence, which allows others to redistribute, adapt and share this work non-commercially provided they attribute the work and any adapted version of it is distributed under the same Creative Commons licence terms.

Abstract

Objective:Gaps and complexities exist in cancer referral and diagnosis in Australia, leading to delays in cancer treatments. Developing evidence-based referral pathways is important for promoting better and more timely cancer diagnosis and care. Type of program or service: This paper describes a toolkit endorsed by the Cancer Institute NSW as a guide for promoting best practice in localising cancer referral and diagnosis pathways in line with the national Optimal Care Pathways. Use of toolkit: Employing methods in the toolkit yielded an increased understanding of cancer care pathways, strengthened collaboration between tertiary and primary sector stakeholders, and enhanced the project skills of Cancer System Innovation Managers. The toolkit has become a valuable guide for consolidating referral pathways for various cancers in the NSW local health districts and could apply to cancer services in other jurisdictions. Lessons learnt: The pilot project showed that the toolkit is useful in developing referral pathways and reflects best stakeholder engagement practices. Local evidence should be generated to support systematic change and should include the perspectives of cancer patients and clinicians. NSW local health districts continue to use the toolkit methods to optimise care to improve outcomes for people living with cancer.