Top news stories of the month January 2025 
Teleios Collaborative Network; Chris Comeaux with Cordt Kassner; 2/5/25 
In this episode of TCN Talks, Chris Comeaux and Cordt Kassner, PhD, publisher of Hospice & Palliative Care Today and CEO and Founder of Hospice Analytics, begin a new format for the “Top News Stories of the Month.” ... Chris and Cordt explore key trends in Hospice news, challenges in reimbursement, competition, workforce issues, and the impact of technology on the field.  They also touch on demographic trends, regulatory issues, and predictions for the future of Hospice Care. Their dialogue highlights the challenge of filtering vast information and the excellent service provided to Hospice and Palliative Care leaders.  This podcast and Hospice & Palliative Care Today are for the leaders in the Hospice and Palliative Care field.

Grief and bereavement books for kids and teens 
Evermore; list developed in collaboration with Dr. Donna Gaffney; 2/1/25
... How can a young person grasp the enormity, meaning, and consequences of an occurrence that brought death, injury, or harm into their life? ... Because books can be such a powerful balm during a time of grief, here’s our list of favorite books for kids and teens that explore the difficult experiences of death, grief, loss, and bereavement. [Click here for the full article with book descriptions, photos, and links.]

• The Dead Bird by Margaret Wise Brown; Ages 4 and up
• The Heart and The Bottle by Oliver Jeffers; Ages 4 and up
• Listen by Holly McGhee; Ages 4-7
• A Shelter for Sadness by Anne Booth; Ages 5 and up
• Sweet Sweet Memory by Jacqueline Woodson and Floyd Cooper; Grades K-3
• The Scar by Charlotte Moundic; Grades K-4
• The Color of Absence: 12 Stories About Loss and Hope edited by James Howe; Grades 6-10
• Bridge to Terabithia by Katherine Paterson; Ages 9 and up
• Ab(solutely) Normal: Short Stories That Smash Mental Health Stereotypes edited by Nora Shalaway Carpenter & Rocky Callen; Teen & Young Adults

Editor's note: Pair this with today's posts, "How to prepare children for hardships and tragedies" and "Today's Encouragement: It is easier to build strong children than ..."

Too much, too fast: Constant change creating corporate burnout 
Global Finance; by Bill HInchberger; 2/4/25 
Change fatigue can strain employees and organizations, and it is getting worse. To reduce the harm, companies are turning to more thoughtful, gradual strategies. ... Hardly a fad pushed by human resources, the phenomenon known as “change fatigue” can affect the bottom line through workforce churn, reduced ability of workers to adapt to further change, and lower productivity. ... Whether adopting new technologies or reacting to external change, many if not most companies appear to be in a constant state of flux. Over 75% of corporations revamp their business model every two to five years, according to a study by WalkMe, a San Franciso-based software-as-a-service firm... Major initiatives tend to favor faster speed and larger scope. Yet there are signs that more gradual solutions might be more effective and less traumatic.

What leaders can learn from the California wildfires 
Modern Healthcare; by Robert Stone, CEO of City of Hope, Duarte, CA; 1/31/25 
When wildfires threatened City of Hope comprehensive cancer center near Los Angeles in recent weeks, hundreds of our leaders and staff – many with homes in the path of the blaze – rushed to campus at 2:30 in the morning to prepare to evacuate more than 200 hospitalized cancer patients. City of Hope, one of the largest research and treatment organizations in the U.S., cares for people with highly complex medical conditions. On the night the wildfires threatened our campus, our patients included people receiving CAR-T immunotherapy, novel clinical trials, and undergoing bone marrow transplants. ... Our healthcare partners in the region were also impacted by wildfires in varying ways. Every health system we spoke with prioritized the safety of not only their own patients and staff but ours as well.  ... What stands out from this middle-of-the-night experience and the days that followed are important lessons that can only emerge from an organization where people are deeply connected to the mission.

• Prioritize patients and empower your people ...
• A strong culture is essential ...
• Draw on institutional expertise ...
• Communicate often, and with gratitude ...
• Support your people ...

Heart to Heart Hospice expands service in Texas with site in West Columbia 
Cision, Plano, TX; by PR Newswire; 2/4/25 
Heart to Heart Hospice, one of the country's largest private providers of hospice care, is expanding its service in Texas with a new site in West Columbia. The new location, known as Heart to Heart Hospice of the Riverbend, is now open to serve more patients and families in the southeast Texas area. The West Columbia branch will serve the counties of Brazoria, Fort Bend, Matagorda, and Wharton.

Francis formally appointed Community Hospice CEO 
Oakdale Leader, Oakdale, CA; Press Release; 2/5/25 
Community Hospice and Health Services (CHHS) Board of Directors recently announced the appointment of Mathew Francis as President/Chief Executive Officer (CEO) effective Feb. 1, 2025. Francis assumed the Interim CEO role in October 2024. As President/CEO, Francis is responsible for the overall and day to day operations of all aspects of Community Hospice and Health Services, and its affiliate organizations, Community Hospice and Health Services Foundation, and CHI Management, Inc. ... Community Hospice and Health Services (CHHS) is a nonprofit, community-based agency, serving the greater Central Valley since 1979.

How can we cultivate happiness in medicine? 
The Hospitalist; by Nikhil Sood, MD and Marjorie Bessel, MD; 2/3/25 
Burnout has led to early physician retirements and clinicians leaving the profession, resulting in an unprecedented physician shortage and access challenges. This jeopardizes our ability to meet the community’s needs and fulfill our mission of making healthcare more accessible to improve quality of life. The question is, how can we, as a healthcare system, tackle this issue head-on? ... The CHIM strategy is a comprehensive, evidence-based approach, driven by clinicians, that supports wellness from an individual and organizational perspective. ... The six dimensions of the strategy include the following:

• Design ...
• Leaders ...
• Social Community ...
• Individual Wellness and Well-being ...
• Second Victims ...
• Pebbles ...

Hiding in plain sight: The most harmful and costly hospital-acquired infection 
Infection Control Today; by Dian Baker, PhD, APRN; 2/5/25 
Nonventilator hospital-acquired pneumonia (NV-HAP) is among the most deadly, harmful, and costly hospital-acquired infections (HAI). In a 2023 study of 284 US hospitals, NV-HAP was attributed to 1 in 14 hospital deaths with an inpatient mortality of 22.4%. NV-HAP is associated with significant morbidity and mortality, the incidence of sepsis, longer hospital stays, increased discharges to skilled nursing facilities and hospice, costs, and higher intensive care unity (ICU) utilization.

How to prepare children for hardships and tragedies 
The Citizen; by Dr. Victor Garlock; 2/4/25 
All of us must face hardships and tragedies. How well we are able to get through difficult times is a major factor affecting the overall quality of our lives. Sometimes these challenges arrive individually, as in a sudden serious illness, an accident, or the death of a loved one. Sometimes — as in last fall’s devastating floods in North Carolina or the recent wildfires in Southern California — entire communities must find a way to move forward. ... Resilience is the capacity to recover from challenges and adversity. Tragic optimism is the determination to remain optimistic and find meaning and purpose in the face of tragedy. [With children:]

• First, provide strong emotional support and encourage social connections ... of a strong attachment between the child and caregivers. ...
• Second, help them build self-esteem by providing appropriate praise and encouragement ... [with] the skill of delayed gratification ...
• Third, encourage children to express their emotions and develop the skills necessary to balance them.
  

Editor's note: Pair this with today's posts "Grief and bereavement books for kids and teens" and "Today's Encouragement: It is easier to build strong children than ..."

No one should die alone. A Cape Fear Valley initiative aims to make that true for patients 
The Fayetteville Observer, Fayetteville, NC; by Lizmary Evans; 2/5/25 
No one should take their last breath alone, and the mission of a new volunteer group at Cape Fear Valley Medical Center will make sure that doesn't happen. The No One Dies Alone program, an internationally recognized initiative that began in 2001 at Sacred Heart Medical Center in Eugene, Oregon, provides trained companions to sit with dying patients who do not have loved ones available during their final moments, according to a news release. ... "Sitting at the bedside of another human being, keeping awake and alert — it’s a vigil," [Mary Draughn, the hospice patient care manager at Valley Hospice House in Fayetteville] said last week. "This vigil provides comfort, meaning, resolution and peace to both the dying person and the companion."

End-of-life-care option bill in New Hampshire stirs conversation on death
Monadnock Ledger-Transcript, Peterborough, NH; by Sruthi Gopalakrishnan; 2/4/25 
At age 75, Rep Bob Lynn says he loves life. But he knows he’s no “spring chicken” and his days are finite. The former chief justice of the state Supreme Court is the prime sponsor of House Bill 254, known as “The New Hampshire End of Life Freedom Act,” which gives terminally ill adults the choice to take control of their final days and end their own life with a dose of lethal medication. ... If the legislation passes, terminally ill individuals aged 18 and over with a prognosis of less than six months to live will be able to receive medications to end their lives on their own terms. It comes with a long list of requirements that two health care providers must verify, including that they have healthy mental capacity, are aware of alternative options and are competent to self-administer the drugs. Opponents warned it could encourage suicide, be misused and send a harmful message that people with disabilities are a burden. ... Michelle Flynn, a retired internal medicine physician from Bedford, said allowing terminally ill patients to end their lives opens the door to death as a treatment option. ... Lisa Beaudoin of Temple, founder of Strategies for Disability Equity, worries it would worsen the discrimination disabled people already face in health care. 

'It's not about technology or dashboards': What health systems need from IT execs next 
Becker's Health IT; by Laura Dyrda; 2/4/25 
Health system IT leaders are entering a new era of leadership amid transformational technology platform purchases, artificial intelligence integration and cybersecurity advancements. But being the most technically proficient no longer guarantees leaders the top role. ... Healthcare IT leaders can become distracted by the bells and whistles of new technology and move forward without considering the patient experience. ... Staying close to the health system's mission is critical for IT leaders, and [Christopher Hutchins, senior vice president and chief data and analytics officer at Lifepoint Health] ties the technology back to patient care. He prioritizes his teammates and colleagues, listening carefully to what they need. 
Notable mentions: James Forrester, Chief Technology Officer at University of Rochester (NY) Medical Center; Donna Roach, CIO of University of Utah Health; and Christopher Hutchins, senior vice president and chief data and analytics officer at Lifepoint Health 

US flu cases are peaking for a second time this season. Now you can test for the virus at home 
CNN; by Neha Mukherjee; 2/5/25 
The United States is seeing a second peak in flu cases this season. After doctor’s office visits for flu dipped early this year, they jumped past the previous season peak at the end of last month, with a 30% test positivity rate — and there are still months to go. The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that there have been at least 20 million cases and 11,000 deaths from flu so far this season. Hospitalizations are rising too, with an estimated 38,255 hospitalizations from flu last week alone. It’s not the only illness spreading, either ... But there are some new tools to help this respiratory virus season: over-the-counter tests that can identify whether an illness is Covid-19 or influenza. The tests are available for purchase at most pharmacies or online ... The tests won’t check for every respiratory virus, but they mark the first time the public can test for flu at home.  

4 critical mistakes to avoid during your workday project 
Becker's Hospital Review; In collaboration with Healthcare IT Leaders; 2/3/25 
The success of a Workday implementation doesn’t just hinge on technology but on people. According to recent research, up to 80% of digital transformation initiatives fail. ... For organizations looking to avoid these pitfalls, here are four critical staffing mistakes to avoid as outlined in our Workday Resource Planning & Staffing Guide:

• Mistake #1: Failing to Backfill Critical Positions ...
• Mistake #2: Insufficient Legacy System Support ...
• Mistake #3: Underestimating Change Management Resources ...
• Mistake #4: Inadequate Post-Implementation Planning ...

It is easier to build strong children than to repair broken men. ~ Frederick Douglas 
Honoring Black History Month 2025
Editor's note: Pair this with today's posts "Grief and bereavement books for kids and teens" and "How to prepare children for hardships and tragedy."