Dana McGinnis-Thomas, MHA, joined the Department of Ophthalmology in 2021 as its inaugural Patient Navigator, a unique position that connects patients in need with community resources to improve access to eye care.
While the concept of patient navigation initially developed to meet needs of patients coordinating cancer care, Distinguished Professor and Chairman of the Department of Ophthalmology José-Alain Sahel, MD, recognized the potential to expand the concept to ophthalmology. By raising support from the Henry L. Hillman Foundation, Dr. Sahel implemented his vision of a unique Patient Navigator Program to address social needs of patients who seek eye care at the UPMC Vision Institute.
Assistant Professor and glaucoma specialist Andrew M. Williams, MD, coauthored a review article with Dr. Sahel on the social determinants of vision health. Unmet social needs are a tremendous barrier to eye care. Resources such as transportation, health insurance, and financial security to afford medications are critical to maintaining care for chronic eye diseases.
With its one-of-a-kind Patient Navigator Program, the UPMC Vision Institute is directly confronting the social needs faced by patients in need. When a member of the care team identifies a patient need — such as transportation to appointments or a need for assistance with insurance applications — the patient is offered a referral to McGinnis-Thomas for help. Her assistance has touched the lives of hundreds of patients. She receives over 500 referrals per year from physicians, surgery coordinators, and staff. In 2023, for instance, she received 599 referrals for 531 unique patients, most commonly for transportation (203), insurance (181), financial assistance (43), and to arrange a companion for surgery (37), as a supporting person is required for outpatient ophthalmic surgery. The Patient Navigator Program has been a resounding success, resolving over 90% of referrals with incredibly positive feedback from grateful patients.
McGinnis-Thomas addresses patients’ needs by utilizing community resources such as insurance-sponsored or county-based medical transportation programs, guiding patients through Medicaid enrollment, assisting patients with the UPMC financial assistance applications, and collaborating with church-based charities to find volunteers to accompany seniors needing eye surgery who lack local family support. She even found a local boy scout troop to assist a visually impaired patient by installing his air conditioner!
McGinnis-Thomas has collaborated closely with Dr. Williams to evaluate the outcomes of the Patient Navigator Program and to publish its unique success in academic literature. Dr. Williams, who directs the Healthy Vision Lab, an interdisciplinary research team that focuses on ophthalmology and public health, has examined the data. Research assistant Julie Cassidy and undergraduate summer student Marie Kinchington recently reviewed patient outcomes after referral to the Patient Navigator Program. Among the most striking findings is the ability of the program to provide access to outpatient ophthalmic surgery. For instance, in 2023, 64 patients were referred for surgical assistance, 50 of whom for transportation help and the others for financial assistance or insurance support. Over 80% of referred patients (52) successfully went to receive surgery, including cataract extraction, glaucoma surgery, and retinal detachment repair, none of whom would likely have been able to access this care without patient navigation assistance.