Patient Navigation Passport: Enhancing Personalized Care for Children with Neurodevelopmental Conditions

Hackensack Meridian Children’s Health has developed a Patient Navigation Passport to support children with special needs — allowing families to advocate for the care needs and preferences of children with autism spectrum disorder, anxiety, attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder, cerebral palsy, Down syndrome and other neurodevelopmental conditions.

The Patient Navigation Passport is a document designed to be completed by a child’s loved one or caregiver. It provides health care providers with information about the child’s health history, communication preferences and expressions of pain or discomfort — as well as potential stress triggers, coping strategies, personal interests, and guidance on how providers can help.

Families can share this document, ideally in advance, with health care professionals in a variety of care settings, including inpatient, outpatient, ambulatory, laboratory and imaging. Additionally, it can be used by school nurses, barbers, teachers, Child Life specialists, and other professionals who could benefit from specific, individualized information to better understand the child’s needs and to deliver personalized care.

“This document is part of our efforts to deliver compassionate, expert care for children with neurodevelopmental conditions while minimizing stress on the family and child,” said Michelle Breaud, MA, Manager, Autism Network Program for Hackensack Meridian Children’s Health. “We recognize that each child is unique and our goal is to provide families with a convenient, accessible tool to facilitate communication about each child’s needs and preferences with health care providers and other professionals.”

View the Hackensack Meridian Children’s Health Patient Navigation Passport.