Project Name: Novartis Re-imagining Care Pathways Collaborative Working Project (“NRCP CWP”) South Eastern Health & Social Care Trust – Breast Cancer Service 

Project Summary: 

The Re-imagining Care Pathways CWP comprises a series of workshops, with the aim of providing pathway mapping support to the CW Partner (healthcare and service teams) to: 

  • Improve efficiency and service effectiveness for the benefit of patient care.
  • Address the local challenges they face in the delivery of patient care.

The programme facilitates area teams (Trust or ICS), to identify areas for efficiency within their Breast Cancer service for prioritisation. The programme will be carried out in a number of different institutions. The pathway mapping workshop will be facilitated by the Novartis “Solutions Implementation Manager (SIM) Team”.

Expected Benefits: 

Anticipated Benefits for Patients:

  • Improvement of clinical pathways which may result in potentially fewer visits and shorter waiting times due to a more efficient clinical pathway.
  • Faster and more equitable access to the complete range of NICE approved treatment options. 
  • Quality care improvements aligned to established best practices.  

Anticipated Benefits for the Organisation(s):

  • Improved understanding of the current service pathway, and associated efficiencies and inefficiencies.
  • Potential to lead to solutions which could allow the CW Partner’s organisation to enhance both patient experience and outcomes.

Anticipated Benefits for Novartis:

  • Understanding of possible opportunities to partner with the CW Partner to enhance patient outcomes and experience.
  • Better understanding of patients’, carers and customers’ needs, which may inform future service offerings, and synergies between needs of the customer and value of Novartis offerings. 

Start Date & Duration: March 2026, 14 weeks

FA-11593955 | March 2026

Project Name: Novartis Re-imagining Care Pathways Collaborative Working Project (CWP) South Eastern Health & Social Care Trust – Breast Cancer Service  

Completion Date: April 2026

Outcome Summary: 

The Re-imagining Care Pathways CWP is a service offered by Novartis, which comprised of a series of one-to-one interviews providing pathway mapping support to the CW Partner to: 

  • Improve efficiency and service effectiveness for the benefit of patient care. 
  • Address the local challenges they face in the delivery of patient care.  

Key Project Outcomes Data: 

A report and patient pathway map were developed in collaboration with the CW Partner which achieved the following: 

  • Defined the patient pathway as it happens now. 
  • Identified the pinch-points in the pathway, and areas for improvement.
  • Co-created a solution to develop the service.  
  • Identified areas of best practice and where they could be replicated. 

Outcomes: 

Through mapping the patient pathway, SEHSCT’s Breast Cancer service showed: 

  • Strong multidisciplinary team (MDT) collaboration across surgery, radiology, pathology, oncology, pharmacy and nursing services. 

  • Effective use of advanced and extended clinical roles, including advanced radiographers, pharmacist-led clinics and non-medical prescribers which has led to additional clinical capacity and resilience.

  • However, demand still exceeds available capacity, resulting in bottlenecks and service delays.

  • Regional inequity resulting from the absence of a trust-wide screening programme within SEHSCT. 

The SEHSCT Breast Cancer Service has clear strengths in multidisciplinary working, patient-centred care and service innovation. However, growing demand, workforce pressures, infrastructure constraints and regional pathway changes are impacting capacity and timely access. The outputs set out practical short-, medium- and longer-term actions to support service resilience, improve patient flow, reduce delays, enhance staff experience and strengthen future sustainability. Implementation should be led collaboratively, with clear ownership, measurable KPIs and regular review to track progress and impact.

Conclusion: 

The recommendations outlined through this project provide a practical basis for targeted improvement over the next 12 months. Prioritising actions through clear governance, defined ownership and measurable KPIs will support sustainable pathway improvements, enhance patient and staff experience, and help ensure the service remains resilient and responsive to future needs.

FA-11759459 | August 2026