This September 2025, the European project CO-CAPTAIN has entered a key new phase with the launch of Work Package 5 (WP5), led by the International Foundation for Integrated Care (IFIC).
This work package — which will run until the end of the project in May 2026 — has an ambitious yet urgent objective: to create a model of cancer prevention that is truly accessible to people living with mental ill health, through shared standards, locally adapted plans, and realistic, evidence-based policy recommendations.
Tackling a Structural Challenge
Although scientific evidence supports the role of Patient Navigation as an effective tool for improving access to prevention, its implementation across European health systems remains inconsistent. People with moderate or severe mental health conditions often face the most barriers: lack of follow-up, difficulties in referrals between services, or simply being left out of existing prevention pathways.
WP5 was designed to address these inequalities at their core.
What will this phase involve?
WP5 is structured around two main tasks:
Task 5.1
- To co-design local implementation plans, based on common standards but adapted to each national context. This includes:
- A systematic review of existing literature on navigation models
- A detailed mapping of resources, policies, and gaps in each pilot country (Austria, Greece, Poland, and Spain)
- The development of operational plans describing how a navigation model could be sustainably implemented for people with mental ill health within existing health systems
Task 5.2
- To translate this knowledge into concrete policy recommendations, co-designed with public authorities, professionals, and service users. These recommendations will aim to:
- Integrate the CO-CAPTAIN model into mental health, cancer prevention, and community care strategies
- Propose adjustments to regulation, governance or funding structures
- Align with European-level frameworks such as Europe’s Beating Cancer Plan or the EU Mental Health Strategy
A Participatory Process with Real Impact
The work will include three workshops in each pilot country, where standards will be validated, real policy needs will be discussed, and proposals will be adjusted to the governance frameworks of each territory.
The outcome will be twofold: on the one hand, local implementation plans (Deliverable 5.1), and on the other, policy recommendations validated by key stakeholders (Deliverable 5.2), which will serve as a roadmap for scaling up the CO-CAPTAIN model.
A Step Towards More Human-Centred Prevention
With the launch of WP5, CO-CAPTAIN reinforces its core message: cancer prevention cannot leave behind those who need it most. Resources and campaigns alone are not enough — systems must be redesigned so that access becomes real, meaningful, and sustainable.
In the coming months, we’ll continue to share progress and learnings from this new phase across all pilot contexts.
