Dr Welman on Personalized Approaches to Decreasing Breast Cancer Disparities

“There’s no substitute for one-to-one relationships with patients.”

Martha Welman, MD, chief medical officer at Neighborhood Health, detailed the importance of personalized patient navigation in breast cancer management.

She argued that although the modern health care landscape often prioritizes digital efficiencies and the promise of artificial intelligence to solve systemic issues, there is ultimately no substitute for one-to-one relationships with patients. This philosophy served as the foundation for a multi-faceted initiative aimed at reducing significant disparities in breast cancer screening and diagnostic pathways for underserved populations.

According to Welman, the population served by Neighborhood Health—which includes many immigrants and individuals with limited English proficiency—faces unique obstacles that make many technological solutions insufficient. Many patients struggle with low health technology literacy, inconsistent internet access, or unreliable cell phone service, all of which prevent them from successfully navigating complex medical systems on their own, she said. Consequently, Welman emphasized that hiring additional bilingual patient navigators to work directly with patients was both an administrative choice and a critical investment in a high-value health care model. By providing this intensive, one-on-one support, the navigators helped patients overcome barriers such as transportation issues, language gaps, and a general lack of understanding regarding specialty care processes.

To supplement this human-centric approach, Welman and colleagues implemented several system-level improvements designed to remove institutional bottlenecks. These included the use of standing orders, which empowered clinical staff and navigators to schedule follow-up imaging without waiting for a physician to manually update an order, and a partnership with a mobile mammography van to increase local access to screenings at primary care sites. The project also used bi-directional, secure texting for patient reminders, bridging the gap between technological efficiency and personal outreach.

Ultimately, Welman stated that these human-led interventions contributed to a meaningful clinical trend. She concluded that the results from this study reinforce the significance of building interpersonal dynamics to help achieve health equity.