Implementing and evaluating an outpatient palliative systems-navigation service for refugees

Palliative care remains limited for refugee claimants, who are only eligible for the Interim Federal Health Plan (IFHP). While IFHP offers some home-based supports, it is often inaccessible due to administrative burdens, leading to overuse of acute care. To address this, GPS Health Navigators launched in January 2024, modeling provincial homecare coordination. Patients are assessed by a palliative physician and nurse navigator, who connect them to services in the community. Funded by the DFM Research Fund, a patient and caregiver satisfaction survey was piloted to assess perspectives from service recipients. While data collection has been completed, analysis is underway. Some themes have already emerged including a generally positive experience with the navigation service, particularly for caregivers. Feedback includes the need for improved communication channels. Overall, the services were described as responsive, supportive, and essential to maintaining both caregiver and patient well-being. The process of data collection brought up many learnings including the several limitations that exist when collecting data from structurally vulnerable clients whose health is declining.

Project Leads: Humaira Saeed, Priya Gupta
Contact: Humaira Saeed (humaira.saeed@medportal.ca)