Literature Review

Chatty robot helps seniors fight loneliness through AI companionshipAssociated Press/Washington Post, 12/22/23Coral Springs, FL—Joyce Loaiza lives alone, but when she returns to her apartment at a Florida senior community, the retired office worker often has a chat with a friendly female voice that asks about her day. A few miles away, the same voice comforted 83-year-old Deanna Dezern when her friend died. In central New York, it plays games and music for 92-year-old Marie Broadbent, who is blind and in hospice, and in Washington state, it helps 83-year-old Jan Worrell make new friends. The women are some of the first in the country to receive the robot ElliQ, whose creators, Intuition Robotics, and senior assistance officials say is the only device using artificial intelligence specifically designed to alleviate the loneliness and isolation experienced by many older Americans. “It’s entertaining. You can actually talk to her,” said Loaiza, 81, whose ElliQ in suburban Fort Lauderdale nicknamed her “Jellybean” for no particular reason.

148 assisted living workers will share in $5.5 million wage theft settlementMcKnight’s Senior Living, 12/21/23Almost 150 senior living caregivers in California will share in a $5.5 million settlement, the state’s largest judgment in a residential care facility wage theft case. The settlement includes a $2 million award announced Dec. 6 by the California labor commissioner’s office, bringing the eventual payout to caregivers at Adat Shalom Board & Care to $5.5 million. Adat Shalom operated six assisted living communities in West Hills, CA, and provided services for residents living with dementia or Parkinson’s disease, as well as hospice care. A seven-year investigation into the company found that from July 2014 to July 2017, live-in workers at Adat Shalom’s facilities were paid less than the minimum wage, were denied overtime and did not receive meal or rest breaks, according to the labor commissioner.

Hospice Staff Promotions and Additions Announced This Week

Beloved Buffalo Hospice campus cat passes awayWGRZ-TV (Buffalo, NY), 12/22/23Buffalo, NY—Buffalo Hospice & Palliative Care shared the sad news that a cat who wandered onto the property during the pandemic has passed away. The campuses beloved black cat 'Biggie Smalls' had become the unofficial mascot of the care facility in the spring of 2020 when he showed up at their doors. Biggie welcomed patients along with their family, friends, and caregivers on a daily basis.

End-of-life care 'no better than it was 70 years ago'The Guardian (United Kingdom)/Yahoo! News, 12/21/23Loneliness afflicts the majority of people at the end of their life, according to a report that found palliative care has not improved in 70 years. Poverty, social isolation and not being able to die where they want are all common issues causing “considerable hardship” for people as they die. Despite advances in healthcare since 1952, the “end of life care system has not kept pace”, the charity Marie Curie concluded in an analysis comparing care today with 70 years ago. It found that 97 per cent of carers were looking after patients who were lonely at the end of their life, while less than a third said people they cared for were always able to die where they wanted.

State tries to remove ‘veil of arbitration secrecy’ in memory care elder abuse caseMcKnights Senior Living, By Kimberly Bonvissuto, 12/19/23In a bid to remove a “veil of arbitration secrecy,” one state attorney general filed a motion to intervene in a lawsuit alleging elder abuse at a memory care facility. Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes filed a motion to intervene on Friday in an abuse and neglect lawsuit against Senita Ridge, the memory care community on the campus of Ridges at Peoria in Peoria, AZ. A judge’s Oct. 31 order moved the case to arbitration, but Mayes charged that the secrecy of arbitration removes transparency in an elder abuse case, which violates the state’s Adult Protective Services Act. The act requires notification to the state’s top attorney when a lawsuit alleging elder abuse or neglect is filed, allowing the state to track and potentially join the case.

Award-winning ‘Music With Movement’ program arms caregivers with tuneful tool to treat dementiaMcKnights Senior Living, By Aaron Dorman, 12/19/23One recent music and movement intervention program designed for seniors combines a number of different technologies, including augmented reality, to help them combat depression and anxiety from their condition, researchers say. Music, and music therapy, have been recognized as a way to help enrich life for senior living community residents.

What Do Physicians Really Think of AI?MedCityNews, By Katie Adams, 12/18/23Nearly half of physicians are equally excited and concerned about the use of AI in their field, according to a new AMA survey. Those who felt optimistic about AI cited reduced administrative burden as the number one benefit they’re seeking. Patient privacy and the impact to the patient-physician relationship were the most common reasons physicians cited for having reservations about AI.

Workers launch 7-day strike at 4 Prime Healthcare hospitalsLos Angeles Daily NewsDecember 20, 2023Nurses, medical assistants, ER techs and others at four Prime Healthcare hospitals launched their second strike of the year Wednesday, Dec. 20, claiming severe understaffing and high turnover have undermined patient care. 

Unlicensed Saratoga County nursing home operator to pay $650,000Times Union (Albany, NY)December 21, 2023Ballston Spa, NY—The unlicensed operator of a now shuttered Saratoga County nursing home is set to repay Medicaid $656,000 after an investigation by the state attorney general’s office and U.S. attorney for the Northern District of New York found years’ worth of fraud and resident neglect at the facility. 

Ratings agency knocks Dartmouth Health over financial performanceConcord (NH) MonitorDecember 21, 2023Lebanon, NH—Fitch ratings downgraded Dartmouth Health’s outlook from stable to negative last week. The outlook change was due to weak operating cash flow with operating losses that accelerated in fiscal year 2023, according to the Dec. 13 rating action commentary from Fitch. 

Festival of Trees raises $50K for Compass HospiceStar Democrat (Easton, MD)December 21, 2023Denton, MD—Dozens of donated, decorated evergreen trees at the Towers Family Historical Museum in Hobbs were not just a beautiful display of Christmas cheer. They prompted $50,000 in donations for Compass Hospice’s work in Caroline County. Despite the rainy weather, the annual Festival of Trees the first weekend of December attracted almost two dozen corporate sponsors who raised over $25,000 of the total proceeds.