Building a High-Risk Program Operating System: Driving Patient Loyalty and Advancing Precision Oncology

How can implementing a cancer risk assessment program enhance service capacity and financial sustainability?

Making Risk Assessment Essential and Successful

In a discussion with Maritess Caamic, director of the Cancer Institute and Infusion Services at Advocate Illinois Masonic Medical Center, she shared insights on how their Chicago-based medical center successfully built a profitable and high-capacity risk assessment program in partnership with CancerIQ.

Many imaging centers and healthcare providers are asking similar questions:

• Why prioritize risk assessment?
• Is it financially viable?
• Can it be sustained long-term?

Here’s what we learned.

Why is Genetic Counseling a Key Differentiator for Cancer Programs?

According to Caamic, the first step in launching and scaling a successful risk assessment program was recognizing that genetic assessment is an essential component of a comprehensive, multidisciplinary cancer care strategy.

To support their patients and provide high-quality preventive care, Advocate Illinois integrated genetic counseling into their service offerings. But would this be a true differentiator for the program?

Advocate thought so. Located in Chicago, where it competes with major academic medical centers, Advocate Illinois sought to bring academic-level genetic services to a community healthcare setting—offering a unique, patient-centered alternative to large institutions.

Overcoming Challenges in Genetic Counseling Services

Before scaling their program, Advocate Illinois needed to address operational inefficiencies that impacted their genetic counselor’s experience and patient throughput. Their key challenges included:

• Manual, paper-based processes that slowed documentation
• Three-hour-long initial patient appointments
• Suboptimal patient experience and engagement
• Delays in documentation and follow-up

To solve these issues, Advocate invested in risk assessment software, streamlining workflows to improve both staff and patient experiences.

Why Invest in Specialty Software for Genetic Counseling?

Genetic counseling is not a primary revenue driver for most cancer centers. However, Caamic recognized that in order to offer cutting-edge care, it was crucial to provide state-of-the-art tools for risk assessment, navigation, and patient monitoring.

By implementing risk assessment software, Advocate was able to:

• Enhance downstream revenue through diagnostic testing, imaging, and preventive treatments
• Improve workflow efficiency, cutting appointment times from over three hours to just one hour
• Increase their annual preventive service revenue by more than $350,000—a revenue stream that previously didn’t exist

Strategic Budgeting for Genetic Risk Assessment

Since genetic programs are relatively new in many cancer centers, they often aren’t accounted for in standard budgets. To justify the investment, Advocate evaluated:

• The time lost due to inefficient workflows
• The cost of building an in-house system vs. partnering with existing solutions
• The intrinsic and opportunity cost savings

Through its partnership with CancerIQ, Advocate increased patient capacity from 400 to 700 per year without adding staff or purchasing costly new equipment—aside from two tablets.

Why Choose CancerIQ Over Other Solutions?

When selecting a risk assessment platform, Advocate prioritized:

• Customizable patient documentation
• Seamless genetic test ordering and reporting
• Intuitive user experience for both staff and patients

Additionally, Advocate needed a quick implementation due to months of downtime after losing their genetic counselor. CancerIQ was fully operational within a week, with just one day of training and two days of follow-up support.

The Value of a Strong Partnership

Beyond software capabilities, Advocate sought a partner that could collaborate to improve patient outcomes. With CancerIQ, they:

• Customized patient materials in multiple languages
• Leveraged data-driven insights to better understand underserved populations

How Has the Patient Experience Evolved?

To ensure seamless adoption, Advocate Illinois equipped their clinic with two tablets:

• One for patients to complete questionnaires during check-in
• One for the genetic counselor to use in-clinic and at health fairs

The result? 85% of patients now complete their assessments before their first appointment, with minimal staff assistance required.

Expanding Genetic Risk Assessment Beyond Cancer Care

Advocate Illinois has seen a positive return on investment within the first year and is now working to:

• Expand risk assessment into digestive health, breast imaging, and primary care
• Integrate genetic screening into OB/GYN, primary care, and surgery
• Position risk assessment as a standard part of preventive healthcare

The Role of EMR Integration

For Advocate, seamless collaboration between CancerIQ and their EMR system is essential. While full integration may be explored in the future, CancerIQ currently serves as the primary tool for:

• Engaging patients and coordinating care
• Collecting and managing genetic risk data
• Exporting essential documentation to the EMR for provider access

How Software Investment Boosted Productivity & Staff Retention

Since implementing CancerIQ, Advocate has:

• Doubled patient volume without increasing staff
• Reduced appointment time by two-thirds, increasing efficiency
• Provided their genetic counselor with career growth opportunities, improving job satisfaction

Learn More

Advocate Illinois showcases how technology-driven cancer risk assessment can drive profitability, efficiency, and patient-centered care.

Through its partnership with CancerIQ, Advocate:
✅ Doubled its patient volume
✅ Increased preventive care revenue
✅ Expanded access to genetic counseling and risk assessment