Literature Review
Home care workers are more likely to live with older, sicker adults, new study finds
08/27/25 at 03:10 AMHome care workers are more likely to live with older, sicker adults, new study findsMcKnight's Home Care; by Adam Healy; 8/21/25Compared to the average adult, home care workers are more likely to live with older seniors or those with long-term services and supports (LTSS) needs, according to a new study published in Health Affairs Scholar... Approximately 15% of these home care workers lived with those who needed LTSS, the study found. This compared to about 4% of nonhome care workers... This tendency among home care workers to live with older, sicker adults could be linked with their on-the-job duties, according to the study. “Household caregiving responsibilities may serve as an on-ramp into the home care workforce — both through employment within the home and through employment outside of it,” the study said. It added, “The flexible work schedules and high labor demand in the home care workforce may be particularly appealing to workers who must balance their employment with unpaid household caregiving responsibilities.” Another possibility is that home care workers are more capable of assisting older, sicker seniors with aging in place, and therefore have a higher likelihood of living with those who could use their care.Publisher's note: Perhaps this is important information regarding employee flexibility and retention.
Teleios announces fourth annual Care As It Should Be award winners
08/27/25 at 03:05 AMTeleios announces fourth annual Care As It Should Be award winnersTeleios press release; by Tina Gentry; 8/21/25Teleios Collaborative Network (TCN) announced the fourth annual recipients of the Care As It Should Be Awards during the August Board of Directors Meeting. The purpose of the Care As It Should Be Awards is to recognize those individuals who make an extraordinary impact on the patients and families who they serve daily. “We know that each of the staff members who are on the front lines provide excellent care to patients, so these awards are to recognize those who take care to the next level – those who go above and beyond to make a patient’s experience the best that it can be during such vulnerable and challenging times,” said Chris Comeaux, President and CEO of TCN. The award recipients are:
Are patients with advanced cancer receiving treatment aligned with their goals?
08/27/25 at 03:05 AMAre patients with advanced cancer receiving treatment aligned with their goals?Medical Xpress; by Wiley; 8/25/25New research indicates that many patients with advanced cancer report receiving treatment focusing on longevity over comfort, even when their goal is the opposite. The findings are published in Cancer. Treatment of serious illnesses generally aims to optimize longevity and quality of life, but in some cases, these goals are at odds with each other. Therefore, clinicians must strive to understand each individual's objectives so that patients do not receive burdensome treatments that go against their wishes.
Why some leaders create chaos to stay relevant
08/27/25 at 03:05 AMWhy some leaders create chaos to stay relevantForbes; by Benjamin Laker; 8/24/25Some leaders intentionally create chaos and manufactured urgency to maintain their relevance and perceived indispensability. This strategy, often driven by insecurity, harms productivity, morale, and innovation, while eroding trust and talent. Effective leadership fosters clarity, empowers teams, and builds resilient systems, rather than relying on constant crisis to prove worth.
How chatbots talk about suicide
08/27/25 at 03:00 AMHow chatbots talk about suicideSTAT Morning Rounds; by Theresa Gaffney; 8/26/25Three major AI chatbots — ChatGPT, Claude, and Gemini — generally respond appropriately to questions about suicide when those queries are especially benign or dangerous. But there is still some fine-tuning needed, especially when it comes to questions that lay somewhere in the middle, according to a new RAND study. And if you read the gutting New York Times opinion essay last week titled “What my daughter told ChatGPT before she took her life,” then you know how urgent an issue this is.Publisher's note: An interesting story about AI applications with suicide. It raises questions about AI applications with hospice, palliative care, and other end-of-life care situations. Accessing STAT Morning Rounds may require free subscription; accessing NYT may require paid subscription.
What if...
08/27/25 at 03:00 AMWhat if there were no hypothetical questions? ~George Carlin
More time, less paperwork: The quiet revolution in primary care
08/27/25 at 03:00 AMMore time, less paperwork: The quiet revolution in primary careModern Healthcare; by Alex Kacik; 8/26/25Concierge and direct primary care practices are gaining traction among physicians, employers and patients increasingly frustrated with traditional care pathways. The growth of these practices, where patients pay membership fees in exchange for increased access to physicians, is a symptom of Medicare and Medicaid reimbursement that has not kept pace with inflation, advisers, doctors and policy experts said. Growing care backlogs, coding and documentation tasks that take doctors away from patients and seemingly ever-rising health insurance premiums are also contributing, they said. “A year ago, I would’ve told you these care models were a slowly evolving, quiet phenomenon,” said Dr. Zirui Song, an associate professor of healthcare policy at Harvard Medical School and a primary care provider at Massachusetts General Hospital. “It is now evolving quite rapidly — it is not so quiet anymore.”Publisher's note: Is concierge medicine coming to a hospice or palliative care provider near you...?
Hospice was meant to offer dignity in death - but it fails the most marginalized. We need hospice programs that go to the streets, into shelters, behind bars
08/27/25 at 03:00 AMHospice was meant to offer dignity in death — but it fails the most marginalized. We need hospice programs that go to the streets, into shelters, behind barsSTAT; by Christopher M. Smith; 8/26/25I’ve spent more than a decade in hospice care, sitting at the bedsides of people facing the final days of their lives. I’ve held hands in hospital rooms, in tents, in prison cells, and in homes that barely qualify as such. And over time, I’ve come to see that dying in America is not just a medical event — it’s a mirror. It reflects everything we’ve failed to do for the living. Hospice was created to bring dignity to the dying — to manage pain, provide emotional and spiritual support, and ease the final passage for people with terminal illness. But the systems surrounding hospice care are riddled with inequity. The very people most in need of compassion — the unhoused, the incarcerated, people of color, LGBTQ+ individuals, and people with disabilities — are systematically excluded, underserved, or erased. Access to a good death is too often reserved for the privileged, while everyone else is left to navigate a system that wasn’t built for them — or worse, actively works against them... The truth is, hospice care cannot achieve its mission unless it actively addresses the inequities built into the structures around it. We need hospice programs that go to the streets, into shelters, behind bars. We need training rooted in cultural humility, in antiracism, in trauma-informed care. We need to reimagine what it means to offer dignity to someone whose life has been defined by abandonment... Because dying is universal. But justice, even at the end of life, is still not.Publisher's note: STAT also references Dr. Ira Byock's article "The hospice industry needs major reforms. It should start with apologies, 8/22/23".
Redefining hospice: Living life to the fullest is not about giving up
08/27/25 at 03:00 AMRedefining hospice: Living life to the fullest is not about giving upForbes; by Wes Kilgore; 8/25/25Discussions about end-of-life care in America are often met with silence, confusion or fear. Yet millions of families face it every year, often without the support, clarity, or resources they need. Tom Koutsoumpas, CEO and founder of the National Partnership for Healthcare and Hospice Innovation (NPHI), argues that it’s time we redefine hospice not as a last resort, but as a profound opportunity for quality, dignified living until the end. [Discussion includes:]
Why physician strikes are a form of hospice
08/27/25 at 03:00 AMWhy physician strikes are a form of hospiceKevinMD; by Patrick Hudson; 8/24/25I have only recently started thinking about strikes. They seemed like something other people did: railway workers, bus drivers, teachers, dockworkers. People with contracts. People who clocked in and out. Not doctors. Not surgeons. Certainly not me. You and I were supposed to absorb and adapt. To advocate from within. And we did, for a long time. We bent ourselves into shapes that did not fit. Worked around all the broken processes. Made phone calls after hours. Took the extra shift. Rewrote the notes to satisfy a system that did not understand the work. Until, eventually, some of us stopped. Not because we wanted to burn it all down, but because we could not keep pretending. And that is what a strike is, sometimes. Not rebellion. Not rage. Just a line and a refusal. And an end to the performance. Is it not strange how long you can work inside a system that is eating itself? ... You do not strike because you have stopped caring. You strike because you remember when it mattered.Publisher's note: An interesting analogy for our fractured healthcare system...
How music therapy can help people with cancer
08/26/25 at 03:10 AMHow music therapy can help people with cancerAmerican Cancer Society; 8/22/25When life gets hard, music can be a balm. Maybe listening to a playlist or making your own music lifts you up. For people facing cancer, music therapy offers a way to ease stress and find connection. What is music therapy? Music therapy is a type of mind-body therapy that uses music to promote healing. “For many people with cancer, it can offer a nonverbal, emotionally resonant way to cope with challenges,” said Cristiane Decat Bergerot, PhD, an American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) expert and head of the Department of Psycho-Oncology at Grupo Oncoclínicas in Brazil. Music therapists use different techniques to help patients process their emotions. One goal of music therapy can be to help manage side effects from illness. For example, many people experience pain from cancer or cancer treatment. Medications can help with physical pain, but emotional pain can be tricky to treat.
RN median hourly pay, by state
08/26/25 at 03:05 AMRN median hourly pay, by stateBecker's Hospital Review; by Kelly Gooch; 8/19/25Median hourly base pay for registered nurses varies across states, with RNs in California earning the most, according to SullivanCotter’s “2025 Health Care Staff Compensation Survey Report.” The survey, released in July, covers nearly 2.5 million healthcare employees across over 2,660 participating organizations, including more than 800,000 individual RNs, licensed practical nurses and nursing managers. Here is the median per-hour base pay for RNs, by state, according to survey data shared with Becker’s [see article for all states]:
UnitedHealth, Elevance scaling back ACA offerings in Colorado
08/26/25 at 03:00 AMUnitedHealth, Elevance scaling back ACA offerings in Colorado Becker's Payer Issues; by Andrew Cass; 8/21/25UnitedHealth’s Rocky Mountain HMO and Elevance’s Anthem HMO Colorado have filed plans to end coverage for multiple health plans in the individual market for the state. The decisions are projected to affect 96,000 Coloradans, the Colorado Division of Insurance said in an Aug. 20 news release. All counties will continue to have plans available in the individual market despite the discontinuation notices.
PEOPLE's 100 Companies that Care in 2025
08/26/25 at 03:00 AMPEOPLE's 100 Companies that Care in 2025 People; by Brendan Le; 8/20/25 In collaboration with Great Place to Work, a global authority on workplace culture, PEOPLE surveyed companies across the U.S. to find the businesses that best demonstrate outstanding respect, care and concern for their employees, communities and the environment. The ninth annual list is based on 1.3 million responses and data from companies representing over 8.4 million employees.
Hospice AI - Compare Medicare Advantage to Traditional Medicare
08/26/25 at 03:00 AMHospice AI - Compare Medicare Advantage to Traditional MedicareHospice & Palliative Care Today staff; 8/24/25Today we asked ChatGPT two questions. It created a 3-page detailed summary that included:
Lessons from U.S. Army Special Ops on becoming a leader
08/26/25 at 03:00 AMLessons from U.S. Army Special Ops on becoming a leaderHarvard Business Review; by Angus Fletcher; 8/19/25In today’s volatile and uncertain world, leadership skills have become more crucial than ever, yet many organizations struggle to train their managers to lead effectively. But experiential learning and failure-based training, as practiced by U.S. Army Special Operations, can transform managers into leaders who excel in high-pressure situations. By focusing on initiative, emotional confidence, imagination, and strategic vision, the Special Ops curriculum offers a unique and effective approach to leadership development that can be adapted to various industries and organizational contexts. This method has shown remarkable success in both military and business settings, making it a valuable resource for companies looking to cultivate strong leaders in times of uncertainty.
Today's Encouragement - Snoopy
08/26/25 at 03:00 AMCharlie Brown: Some day, we will all die, Snoopy.Snoopy: True, but on all the other days, we will not.
How to choose the right assisted living facility for your aging loved one
08/26/25 at 03:00 AMHow to choose the right assisted living facility for your aging loved one Mediafeed.org; by Rebecca Schier-Akamelu; 8/19/25 When you tour assisted living facilities, you’ll have the opportunity to speak directly with staff members and, when appropriate, even residents. Asking questions about pricing, amenities, caregivers, the types of care provided, and community culture will help you and your loved one compare when it’s time to choose the best facility. Key questions to find the right fit: ...
NPHI applauds California’s statewide campaign to combat hospice fraud
08/26/25 at 03:00 AMNPHI applauds California’s statewide campaign to combat hospice fraud ehospice; 8/21/25Momentum grows nationally to protect patients and preserve high-quality hospice care – The National Partnership for Healthcare and Hospice Innovation (NPHI), the national voice for nonprofit hospice and palliative care providers, applauds California Attorney General Rob Bonta for launching a comprehensive statewide campaign to combat hospice fraud. This campaign includes public service announcements, community outreach events, and a new reporting hotline designed to educate consumers about hospice fraud. It comes amid a broader national effort by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) to strengthen hospice program integrity and crack down on fraudulent providers across the country, with heightened focus on fraud-prone states such as California, Nevada, Arizona, and Texas.Notable mentions: Statement from Tom Koutsoumpas.
States with the most, fewest licensed nurses
08/26/25 at 03:00 AMStates with the most, fewest licensed nursesBecker's Clinical Leadership; by Mariah Taylor; 8/13/25The National Council of State Boards of Nursing found Washington, D.C., has the most licensed nurses per capita, while Utah is the state with the fewest... The data found Wyoming and Vermont had the fewest licensed nurses in their states overall, at 9,440 and 12,957, respectively. Meanwhile, California and Texas had the most licensed nurses at 578,043 and 526,812, respectively. Becker’s used 2024 Census data to calculate how many nurses are in each state per 100,000 population. Here are [states] with the most and fewest nurses:Most [licensed RNs per 100,000 population]
Nonprofit hospital CEO, employee pay gap widens: Study
08/26/25 at 03:00 AMNonprofit hospital CEO, employee pay gap widens: StudyBecker's Hospital Review; by Kelly Gooch; 8/20/25The wage gap between CEOs and average employees at U.S. nonprofit hospitals widened from 2009 to 2023, according to a study published this month in Health Affairs. Researchers from the University of Chicago, Brown University in Providence, R.I., and Rand Corp. used IRS Form 990 and Medicare cost reports to examine data from 1,424 nonprofit hospitals. They found hospital CEOs earned about 10.2 times the average wage of hospital employees in 2009. By 2023, that ratio had risen to 12 times the average wage — a 17.6% increase. Between 2009 and 2023, average CEO pay rose by 27.5% and top executive pay by 23.1%, while the average wage for all hospital employees (executives included) rose just 9.8%. Inflation-adjusted average annual CEO pay rose from about $814,000 in 2009 to $1.04 million in 2023.Publisher's note: What is the CEO / Employee pay gap in your organization?
Cambia, BCBS North Dakota announce strategic affiliation
08/26/25 at 03:00 AMCambia, BCBS North Dakota announce strategic affiliationBecker's Payer Issues, by Jakob Emerson; 8/21/25Cambia Health Solutions and Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Dakota plan to enter a strategic affiliation that would bring the Fargo-based insurer under Cambia’s management while maintaining its local governance and mutual status. The agreement would integrate BCBSND into Portland, Ore.-based Cambia, alongside its Regence Blues plans in Idaho, Oregon, Utah and Washington, according to an Aug. 21 news release. Cambia will assume responsibility for operations, including claims, IT, financial reporting and plan performance. BCBSND employees will become Cambia employees, though the health plan will keep its local name, board of directors and foundation. Its reserves and philanthropic resources will also remain in North Dakota.
By the Bay Health launches new scholarship in memoriam of Marin County healthcare visionary Pat Kendall
08/25/25 at 03:10 AMBy the Bay Health launches new scholarship in memoriam of Marin County healthcare visionary Pat KendallBy the Bay Health press release; by Caroline Kawashima; 8/21/25By the Bay Health, the largest independent nonprofit hospice, palliative care, and home health provider in Northern California, today announced a new scholarship in memoriam of Marin County healthcare advocate and visionary Pat Kendall. The By the Bay Health Pat Kendall Memorial Nursing Scholarship provides financial assistance to Bachelor of Science Nursing students who demonstrate financial need and have an interest in pursuing a career in home-based care in the Bay Area... Through the generosity of By the Bay Health donors, a $50,000 scholarship will be awarded this year to two Dominican University of California students in the B.S. Nursing program enrolled in the 2025-2026 and 2026-2027 academic years. Each scholarship awardee will receive $12,500 per year for the 3rd and 4th years of the B.S. in Nursing program and an exclusive recruitment opportunity with By the Bay Health in the Spring semester of their fourth year. [Press release here.]