Dr. Carl Swart, a nursing educator and researcher specializing in oncology and palliative care, served as a facilitator on the ethics of being a patient navigator. His expertise helped deepen participants’ understanding of ethical principles essential to compassionate and effective patient navigation.
Initiative helps close critical gaps in cancer care, improving early detection and treatment coordination across Botswana.
Across sub-Saharan Africa, breast cancer remains the leading cause of cancer deaths among women, often not because treatment does not exist, but because access comes too late. In Botswana, where survival still depends on navigating a complex health system, a new initiative is changing that. Twenty-nine nurses and midwives from clinics across the Gaborone District have successfully completed the training in patient navigation, a model designed to prevent women from falling through the gaps in diagnosis and treatment.
The initiative, led by the Botswana-Rutgers Partnership for Health in collaboration with the Ministry of Health, the International Cancer Foundation, and Roche, marks an important step forward in how breast cancer care is organized and delivered. The program aims to enhance the coordination of care, streamline referrals, and reduce the barriers faced by breast cancer patients.
“Navigation brings humanity into cancer care. It ensures patients are seen, heard, and supported through every step of their journey.” — Dr. Refeletswe Lebelonyane, Program Manager, Botswana-Rutgers Partnership for Health
On the far left, Ms. Patricia Letlape, breast cancer survivor and founder of The Fighters Support Group, served as a facilitator in the program.
Held at Gaborone Central Clinic on June 4–5 and June 17–18, the training equipped 29 nurses and midwives with the skills to serve as patient navigators, a role that combines clinical understanding with logistical coordination and psychosocial care. Through five focused modules, participants deepened their understanding of breast cancer management, ethical practice, and strategies to link patients more effectively between primary clinics and tertiary hospitals.
Facilitators included Patricia Letlape, a breast cancer survivor and founder of The Fighters Support Group, who shared her personal story to highlight the importance of awareness, empathy, and community support. Dr. Carl Swart, a nursing educator and oncology researcher, led sessions on the ethical dimensions of patient navigation.
Beyond the training, program teams conducted site visits to Sekgoma Memorial Hospital in Serowe and Nyangabwe Referral Hospital in Francistown, where they introduced the new Patient Navigator Coordinator, Ms. Kabo Maungo Mazunga, and engaged with hospital staff to discuss implementation strategies. These visits also laid the groundwork for training medical officers in biopsy procedures, a key step toward building a two-way navigation model that connects patients more directly to timely diagnosis and treatment.
Early results already reveal a quiet transformation taking place. Trained navigators are helping women keep appointments, easing the path between primary and tertiary levels of care, and shortening the wait for diagnosis and treatment. Nurses who took part in the sessions have expressed enthusiasm to continue this momentum by forming local support groups within their clinics, a move that will further embed navigation and peer support in the healthcare system.
The June sessions reflect the growing momentum to bring patient navigation to every corner of Botswana. Building on the success of this pilot, the Botswana-Rutgers Partnership for Health and the Ministry of Health plan to expand navigator training to additional districts in the coming year.
As Botswana strengthens its cancer care system, this collaboration stands as a model of what’s possible when local leadership, international expertise, and community voices come together, ensuring that every patient, no matter where they live, can access timely, compassionate, and coordinated care.
