Literature Review

Updated opioid prescribing guidelines: Implications for nurse practitioners The Nurse Practitioner / Lippincott; by Rhond Winegar, PhD, DNP, APRN, FNP-BC, CCRN, CPN; Tara Martin, MSN, RN, CPN; Zhaoli Liu, PhD, FNP-C, CPPS; November 2025 issue. The opioid epidemic remains a significant public health challenge in the United States. Nurse practitioners (NPs) play a crucial role in addressing this crisis. This article discusses the implications for NPs of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 2022 updated clinical practice guideline on opioid prescribing, focusing on four key areas: 1) deciding whether to initiate opioids, 2) determining appropriate opioids and dosages, 3) determining treatment duration and follow-up, and 4) implementing risk assessment and mitigation strategies. Adhering to this guideline enables NPs to optimize opioid prescribing practices and deliver patient-centered care that aligns with public health priorities to combat the opioid crisis.

AHA responds to OSTP request on AI policies for health care American Hospital Association; by Ashley Thompson, AHA Senior Vice President, Public Policy Analysis and Development; 10/27/25 ... On behalf of our nearly 5,000 member hospitals, health systems and other health care organizations, our clinician partners — including more than 270,000 affiliated physicians, 2 million nurses and other caregivers — and the 43,000 health care leaders who belong to our professional membership groups, the American Hospital Association (AHA) appreciates the opportunity to provide comment on the Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) request for information (RFI) regarding regulatory reform on artificial intelligence (AI). ... [Our] members have urged that policy frameworks strike the appropriate balance of flexibility to enable innovation while ensuring patient safety. The AHA offers four categories of recommendations to maximize the potential for AI to improve care, accelerate innovation and support the health care workforce.

Where the line is: The ethical limits of physician investingMedscape; by Donavyn Coffey;10/24/25So where is the legal and ethical line? Medscape Medical News spoke with physicians, entrepreneurs, and financial experts to explore how doctors can grow their wealth without putting their patients or their credibility at risk. [The article discusses:]

EverHeart Hospice to be featured on all access with Andy Garcia Mercer County Outlook, Greenville, OH; 10/27/25 EverHeart Hospice is set to be featured in an upcoming national documentary distributed to public television on “All Access with Andy Garcia.” The segment will provide vital education on the topics of hospice and palliative care, highlighting the compassionate, specialized support EverHeart Hospice provides to its patients and families. ... The feature will be distributed nationally, reaching major markets in all fifty states, with an anticipated availability in early 2026 for circulation. The national emphasis on distribution will help demystify end-of-life care and promote a greater understanding of the benefits of both hospice and palliative services to viewing audiences.

The emerging role of osteopathic manipulative medicine in enhancing quality of life for palliative and end-of-life patients: A narrative review Cureus; Ambrose Loc T Ngo, Linda Nguyen, Cynthia Shahbandeh, Jared Nichols; 9/26/25... This narrative review synthesizes current clinical evidence on the application of OMM in palliative and end-of-life care, focusing on its potential to manage multiple distressing symptoms, including pain, respiratory distress, fatigue, gastrointestinal issues, edema, and psychological stress. The review aims to provide an integrative understanding of [osteopathic manipulative medicine] OMM's role in symptom management, identify evidence gaps, and propose directions for future research.

Post-biographical dignity in the age of artificial intelligence: Narrative, ePROMs and ethical challenges in end-of-life care Palliative & Supportive Care; by Abel García Abejas, David Geraldes Santos, Helder Mota-Filipe, Àngels Salvador Vergés; 10/27/25 Significance of results: End-of-life care in the age of AI must move beyond autonomy-focused ethics to encompass the narrative, relational, and posthumous dimensions of dignity. A critical, philosophically informed ethics is essential to prevent depersonalisation in digitally mediated care.

When words matter: NFDA releases groundbreaking communication guide for funeral professionals National Funeral Directors Association (NFDA), Brookfield, WI; Press Release; 10/27/25 The National Funeral Directors Association (NFDA) has released “When Words Matter: A Funeral Director’s Guide to Clear and Compassionate Communication,” a groundbreaking, research-driven resource designed to bridge the growing language gap between funeral professionals and the families they serve. ... Available now as a free download at NFDA.org/Research, this new guide is grounded in original NFDA research conducted earlier this year with more than 1,100 U.S. consumers across four generations. ... While funeral professionals have long used terms like “funeral,” “memorial service” and “celebration of life,” the new study revealed that families often define – or misunderstand – these terms in radically different ways. Editor's Note: Basic decisions about burial versus cremation usually need to be made before the death. Your interdisciplinary team members need to be up-to-date with this NFDA communication guide, for consistent family information and planning.

Best of Beth Ashley: After a life well lived, facing the sadness together Marin Independent Journal; by Beth Ashley, this IJ is reprinting some of the late Beth Ashley’s columns. This is from 2014; 10/27/25 A dear friend is now being cared for by hospice. Like so many others, she has trusted hospice to see her through the last days of her life. Knowing that she may soon die is a blow to the heart. But it’s not as though I haven’t known that for all of us, life ends sometimes. That doesn’t make it any easier. By now, a huge assortment of dear ones have left my here and now. My parents are gone. My beloved second husband. My two sisters. My precious son Jeff. And so many friends I’ve lost count, including my best friend and fellow traveler for years and years, my Stanford classmate Skid. I still talk to them all. My mom has not really left my life; I’m just with her in a different way. ... Whenever these endings come near, it’s important to express our love, and face the final sadness together.

Engaging community health workers in Advance Care Planning  Hospice News; by Jim Parker; 10/24/25 Three organizations have developed an advance care planning training program in Illinois for community health workers that could potentially be adapted for other states. The seeds for the project were planted when the Illinois Public Health Association (IPHA) was awarded a grant by the Health Resources & Services Administration (HRSA). IPHA proceeded to engage the Illinois Hospice & Palliative Care Organization (IL-HPCO) and the HAP Foundation as subject matter experts to help develop the curriculum, as well as the education company Hospice Media, which filmed and designed the modules and workbooks.

Here is what no one tells you about watching your wonderful dad slowly slipping away in front of you HuffPost Personal; by Jill Bodach; 10/25/25 ... When I get the call at 2:30 a.m. from my dad’s nursing home, dread slaps me awake, and I answer in an almost whisper. They say, “Your father is having trouble breathing. We’ve sent him to Bridgeport Hospital.” ... In the emergency department, I am led into a waiting room. ... He is transferred to the ICU, and again I am told to wait. ... When I am finally allowed to see him, family members in other rooms look up when I walk by. Some smile and nod. A knowing. I smile back. We’re all in this together in some weird way the universe has planned. ...

After her son’s painful death, a Cheshire mother highlights Connecticut’s pediatric hospice gap New Haven Register, Norwalk, CT; by Cris Villalonga-Vivoni; 10/26/25 Carolyn Torello believes that no parent should outlive their children, yet that became her reality. ...  As his condition worsened, the family faced his impending death without the support of pediatric palliative or hospice care. No provider, she said, seemed to know how to help or where to begin. He died at 15 years old in 2021. ... In 2020, an estimated 7,800 children in Connecticut were living with complex medical conditions that limited their life expectancy and could have benefited from palliative or hospice care, according to data from the National Survey of Children's Health. ... Torello thinks that if Michael had access to hospice care, he could have died with greater dignity, and their family could have focused on simply being together. ... Efforts to create a more formalized pediatric palliative care system have been underway since 2024, led by a state-commissioned working group that will make recommendations to the legislature on potential reforms.