Via Oncology Pathways

Medical and Radiation Oncology Pathways for Evidence-Based Excellence

Why does my cancer program need Pathways?

As healthcare reform is accelerating the formation of clinically integrated (CI) networks, accountable care organizations (ACOs), and patient-centered medical homes (PCMHs), cancer programs are looking for tools that best position them to participate with these entities, whether directly or as preferred programs for patient referrals. Pathways are a critical element for cancer programs to demonstrate their value to key stakeholders, both in terms of quality and efficiency, and ensure success in the new healthcare paradigm.

What are Via Oncology Pathways?

Via Oncology Pathways are continually updated, physician-led, evidence-based algorithms for common oncology and malignant hematology patient presentations imbedded in a patient specific, point of care, decision support tool that allows cancer programs to ensure and demonstrate quality and efficiency for patients and other stakeholders.

How are Via Oncology Pathways created and maintained?

The Pathways are developed by expert panels of disease-specific academic and community oncologists from around the country who meet quarterly to establish and update their consensus around a single-best treatment for each state and stage of disease based on a hierarchy of efficacy, toxicity and cost.

What is meant by “single-best”? It may not be what you think!

Unlike guidelines which provide a wide range of standard of care options, Via Oncology Pathways drive to one best treatment for each common patient presentation – e.g., early stage, Her2/neu(-), ER/PR (+), adjuvant, node negative, OncotypeDX (high). Once that single-best treatment is determined, the committee examines if there are patient subpopulations for which that treatment is not appropriate (such as drug contraindications) and determines the best therapy that addresses that subpopulation, adding branches to the Pathways to ensure at least 80% coverage of possible presentations.

How can Via Oncology Pathways support my cancer program’s complex clinical, business and technological environment?

Our Unmatched Flexibility and Ability to Customize

We understand that every oncology practice is unique and “one size fits all” just doesn’t work. As such, we provide practices with the ability to easily customize the Via Oncology Pathways and Portal for all of the following:

• Pathway Content:  what options are displayed “On Pathway”
• Which clinical trials to display and where to place them
• Which diseases to implement
• Which patients to include (by payer, by type, etc.)
• What additional links or documents to include
• Whether to implement the Off Pathway Peer Review functionality
• Whether to integrate with the PMS and EMR

Assistance with Developing and Executing Your Market Strategy with Payers and Referral Sources

• Seasoned oncology team who can provide a wide range of options for contracting with payers and referral sources for Pathways value.
• Consulting services along a continuum from contracting strategy sessions to comprehensive assistance with negotiations and financial models.

How are Via Oncology Pathways different from other Pathways programs?

Breadth and Depth of Clinical Content

• No other pathways portal provides pathways multidisciplinary disease coverage for medical and radiation oncology.
• With Advance Care Planning support, Via Oncology Pathways address the phases of disease management beyond only the treatment phase.
• With over 85% coverage of new cancer diagnoses, pathways not only address the most prevalent diseases, but they also give strong attention to the disease presentations seen less frequently for which the potential for treatment variability increases. In all, Via Oncology Pathways today cover 17 disease groups in medical oncology and 15 disease groups in radiation oncology. 

Critical Decision Support Tool is easy to use and provides backbone for rich tools and datasets

• The Pathways Portal integrates easily into each oncologist’s workflow for ease of use, resulting in high patient/data capture rates and no loss to oncologist productivity.
• The Pathways Portal puts critical tools at the clinicians’ fingertips throughout the application, from disease statistics, AJCC staging, hyperlinked citations, regimen order sets, dose modification guidance based on the original studies and patient education materials.
• The Pathways Portal prioritizes accruals to clinical trials by always putting practice specific trials as the first pathway option.
• Integration to the electronic medical record means oncologists avoid costly, duplicate entry of treatment orders.
• Detailed monthly reporting generated from the Via Oncology Pathways Portal provides important clinical depth (e.g., stage, tumor marker, line of therapy, etc.) and insight not found in claims level data.
• Novel communication vehicles for real-time updating of patients’ pathways status to referral sources and health plan disease managers

 Clarity of Business Model

• No required bundling with other products and services
• We don’t sell practice data to payers or pharma…ever
• No pharma based business lines
• Commitment to clinical research
• Permanent and openly transparent disease committee process