5 Healthcare trends that will shape 2024
MedCity News, by Holly Miller; 1/5/24

1. Hurdles for AI innovation in healthcare
2. Increased threat of cybersecurity attacks
3. Revolutionizing nurse training for the future
4. Transition to team-based and virtual care
5. Behavioral health to take center stage

To affiliate or acquire: Trends in nonprofit hospice consolidation
Hospice News, by Jim Parker; 1/5/24
Recent years have seen an uptick in consolidation activity among nonprofits in the hospice space. Increasingly, nonprofit s are pursuing acquisitions and affiliations, as well as forming regional collaboratives. To achieve these kinds of growth, hospices must consider whether they should affiliate or buy another company outright. Each approach comes with benefits and risks.

Hospice and home health care in Estes Park: A 2024 update
Estes Park Trail Gazette, by Dawn Wilson; 1/5/24
Estes Park Health Board of Directors and management made the difficult decision to eliminate in-home hospice and home health care services as part of a plan to bring the hospital into a financially secure position. Sunday, Dec. 31, 2023, marked the last day that Estes Park Health provided these services.

How hospice, behavioral health can team up for caregiver support
Hospice News, by Holly Vossel; 1/6/24
“We are officially living in that sandwich generation where so many of us actually are caregivers, taking care of our children, sometimes even the parent is now taking care of two generations, ..."

Talking about dying
JAMA Network, by Yael Schenker, MD, MAS; 12/23
As a palliative medicine physician, I had been asked to see her for pain. Reading through her medical record, I saw that she had been admitted to the hospital 5 days ago. Many specialists had been involved in her care, their notes laser focused on the particular body part or system within their area of expertise...

Most palliative care nurses feel unable to meet patient needs
Nursing Times, by Ella Devereaux; 1/4/24
Junior health staff are having to make complex decisions about end-of-life care, due to a lack of out-of-hours palliative care nursing services, a new report has warned. The report, published by the Queen’s Nursing Institute and the Marie Curie Charity, has assessed how end-of-life care has changed over time and some of the issues that continue to impact the efficiency of services.

Upcoming e-prescribing regs could give relief to hospice, palliative care providers, advocates say
McKnights Home Care, by Adam Healy; 1/5/24Proposed rules, if finalized, could make it easier for providers to prescribe controlled substances via telemedicine. The Drug Enforcement Administration is expected to develop a “special registry” for certain controlled substances that could be prescribed without an in-person visit, according to Katy Barnett, director of home care and hospice operations and policy at LeadingAge. Certain substances were already granted similar prescription flexibilities during the COVID-19 public health emergency (PHE); a new registry would subject these substances to oversight by the DEA.

Terminally ill Connecticut woman ends her life on her own terms, in Vermont
AP US News, by Lisa Rathke; 1/4/24
A Connecticut woman who pushed for expanded access to Vermont’s law that allows people who are terminally ill to receive lethal medication to end their lives died in Vermont on Thursday.

Memorial Hermann drops Humana Medicare Advantage
Becker's Payer Issues, by Jakob Emerson; 1/4/24
Houston-based Memorial Hermann Health System is no longer in network with Humana's Medicare Advantage plans, effective Jan. 1. The 17-hospital system told Houston Public Media that it continues to participate in Humana's commercial network. Humana told the outlet that its Medicare Advantage members who are actively receiving treatment at Memorial facilities, can "continue care until treatment is completed." In November, Memorial Hermann issued termination notices after the reimbursement dispute came to an impasse. It is unclear how many people are affected by the dispute. Along with its hospitals, Memorial has 6,700 affiliated physicians across 260 care delivery sites. Humana is the country's second largest MA insurer, with 5.9 million members as of Nov. 1.

Cap rates increase by 74 basis points across all segments of senior living and care
McKnights Senior Living, by Kathleen Steele Gaivin, 1/3/24
The average senior housing and care capitalization rate across all segments increased by 74 basis points between April and October, according to results of the 13th edition of CBRE’s US Senior Housing & Care Investor Survey for the second half of 2023. An April survey had found that cap rates had increased for all sectors but skilled nursing. The commercial real estate services and investment company sought feedback from senior housing investors, developers, lenders and brokers throughout the United States. The survey was conducted in October, and results were released in December.

Older Americans say they feel trapped in Medicare Advantage plans
KFF Health News, by Sarah Jane Tribble; 1/5/24
Enrollment in Medicare Advantage plans has grown substantially in the past few decades, enticing more than half of all eligible people, primarily those 65 or older, with low premium costs and perks like dental and vision insurance. And as the private plans’ share of the Medicare patient pie has ballooned to 30.8 million people, so too have concerns about the insurers’ aggressive sales tactics and misleading coverage claims.

Home health agencies grapple with 'acuity creep' as patient needs become more complex
Home Health Care News, by Patrick Filbin; 1/5/24
As the demand for home-based care continues to rise, so does the need for more intensive care plans as patients continue to be sicker and more complex. Home health agencies are feeling this “acuity creep,” and they’re adjusting. But at times, it’s hard to keep up. “When I’m talking about acuity creep, I’m thinking about how much need do the patients in our care models require?” Michael Johnson, president of home health and hospice at Bayada Home Health Care, said. “It’s not just medical needs, either — there’s a social need as well."

About 10 percent of Medicare home health providers do not use EHRs, study finds
McKnights Home Care, by Adam Healy; 1/3/24
Home health agencies that do not have electronic health record (EHR) systems in place are at a disadvantage, but many still lack this technology, according to a recent study published in the journal Home Health Care Management and Practice. Among a sample of  more than 1,500 Medicare home health providers, about 10% did not use EHRs.

7 health tech predictions for 2024
McKnights Home Care, by Patrtick Tarnowski; 1/4/24

1. Enhanced user-friendly digital healthcare
2. Multiproblem solutions
3. AI integration
4. Healthcare starts at home
5. Increased investment in proactive care
6. Aging population focus
7. Diversification of revenue streams

How health systems are using AI to augment patient safety
Modern Healthcare, by Mari Devereaux; 1/5/24
Clinicians at some health systems are turning to artificial intelligence-driven tools to predict and avert negative patient outcomes, though stakeholders say caution remains warranted.

Pets can improve health outcomes for older adults living at home, overseas study finds
McKnights Home Care, by Adam Healy; 1/3/24
Pet ownership may be linked to slower cognitive decline among adults aging in place, according to a recent study conducted in England. “Older adults living alone are at high risk for developing dementia,” the researchers wrote in the study published by JAMA Network Open. “Pet ownership might completely offset the association of living alone with faster rates of decline in verbal memory and verbal fluency among older adults.”
Editor's Note: What happens when the senior adult becomes to ill to take care of their pet? Explore one  program, Banfield's "Peace of Mind: Keeping Pets and People Together During Hospice Care."

The income gap jeopardizing retirement for millions
The New York Times, by Paula Span; 1/6/24
Paula Span explores the unprecedented challenges posed by a rapidly aging population.

How technology is shaping the value-based care evolution
McKnights Long-Term Care News, 1/4/24
Podcast - Join us as we explore the transformative influence of technology on the evolution of value-based care. Leaders from MatrixCare, a key technology solution, and Mark Parkinson, President of AHCA, join us to discuss the challenges faced by post-acute providers in the ever-changing world of value-based care.

Remote staff training boosts quality of life, lowers sedative use in residents with dementia
McKnights Senior Living, by Kristen Fischer; 1/3/24
A digital training program significantly improved the quality of life for people with dementia who lived in assisted living communities and nursing homes in the United Kingdom. As a result, there was a 20% reduction in use of psychotropic medications, the authors noted in a report published Dec. 20 in Alzheimer’s & Dementia. The goal of the 16-week program was to train staff members to deliver personalized care to residents. 

Everyone you meet is fighting a battle you know nothing about. Be kind. Always.