What is Care Navigation?

Care Navigation is about getting the right care, by the right person, at the right time for patients in Sheffield.

Care navigation improves access to primary care services for patients. It allows primary care staff to provide patients with information on health and wellbeing services local to their community.

It is designed to give patients choice to access the most appropriate service, offering their patients some alternatives to having a GP appointment, if it is suitable for them.

Care Navigation is defined as:

“A person centred approach that uses signposting and information to help primary care patients and their carers move through the health and social care system as smoothly as possible to ensure that unmet needs are met.”

This means helping patients navigate their way through the often complex health system by giving them as much information as possible to make their own decision and signposting them to the most appropriate health professional.

In 2017 NHS Sheffield began to develop care navigation and training was offered to all GP practices across the city. Most practices now provide care navigation in some form. A few practices have created their own, very successful, systems.

How does care navigation work?

Care navigators are usually receptionists or administrators who have received training to help direct patients to the most appropriate service. They will ask you a couple of questions to find out the nature of your call and they may suggest another service that would be better for you to attend.

You might hear a recorded message when you call your GP practice asking you if you wouldn’t mind telling them a little about the problem you are calling about. This is simply so they can direct you to the person who would be most suitable to help you with your problem.

Care navigators will never try to diagnose your problem or offer you clinical advice; this way of working is about offering you the choice to see other health professionals who will be more appropriate than the GP, and who may often be able to see you more quickly and easily.

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