Literature Review

Healthcare leaders navigate pushback to health equity programsModern Healthcare; by Mari Devereaux; 8/27/24Brewing opposition to health systems' programs on equitable care for patients of color could make health systems need to justify or reframe their efforts. A nonprofit conservative law firm earlier this month filed a federal civil rights complaint with the Health and Human Services Department against Cleveland Clinic, alleging its minority stroke program and minority men’s center discriminate against other patients. The center and program offer treatments, prevention services and specialist referrals tailored to meet the needs of Black and Latino patients... [Alternatively...] “There's a war on DEI and health equity right now, because people don't really understand what's happening in these programs,” said Dr. Georges Benjamin, executive director of the American Public Health Association. Health equity programs aren’t giving more care to one patient versus another based on race or ethnicity, Benjamin said. Instead, they are identifying high-risk patients with a likelihood for poor outcomes, who are often people of color, and putting together resources to help those individuals get the same care as others, he said.

Crafting holiday joy for Hernando Pasco Hospice patients Hernando Sun, New Port Richey, FL; by Megan Hussey; 8/26/24 It is the mission of Hernando Pasco Hospice and HPH Hospice Women of Giving to make this coming holiday season a brighter one for all patients served by HPH, and for HPH staff and team members, with the help of beautiful, jubilant holiday cards custom-made for them. It is their goal, in fact, to create at least 1,000 cards for these deserving individuals based in Hernando, Pasco and Citrus counties through the Crafty Christmas Campaign. ... “This is our second year for Crafty Christmas,” said Andrea Arflack, Director of Philanthropy Chapters Health Foundation In support of HPH Hospice. “It was created by one of our staff members in the spirit of giving. We made more than 1,000 cards last year for HPH patients and workers and plan to do the same thing this year.”Editor's Note: Now's the time to adapt this easy, meaningful community engagement with your volunteers and community partners. 

VNA Hospice and Don Quijote supports Meals on Wheels with annual benefit dinner GreatNews.Life, Valparaiso, IN; by Garrett Spoort; 8/27/24 Don Quijote Restaurant hosted its fourth annual VNA Hospice NWI Meals on Wheels benefit dinner on Sunday, August 25. The event serves as a traditional fundraiser while educating the community and sharing stories about the program. Bob Franko, CEO of VNA Hospice NWI, has high anticipation every year as this event inches closer. “This is something that we look forward to every year,” Franko said. “We have about 250 people in our Meals on Wheels program. Every $125 that we raise today will feed a senior for a month. Food scarcity has become more of an issue in our community for the seniors, so this event is really important for us.” Don Quijote has supported the mission for VNA Hospice’s Meals on Wheels program. The restaurant covers all of the event costs, allowing all of the funds raised to go directly to feeding seniors in need.Editor's Note: What a wonderful community partnership. Typically, nonprofit organizations are raising money for their own services. This initiative has a larger, collective purpose and community engagement that benefits all involved.

Health systems brace for the 'silver tsunami'Becker's Hospital Review; by Laura Dyrda; 8/23/24Around 10,000 Americans turn 65 years old every day, gaining access to Medicare benefits. The number of Medicare beneficiaries is expected to continue growing in the next five years, and health systems are making changes to keep up. In 2020, around 73 million Baby Boomers were eligible for Medicare benefits, and by 2030 all Baby Boomers will be Medicare-eligible, according to the Census Bureau. Advances in medicine and healthy lifestyle mean people are living longer and demanding more from their care. "In the next five years, the most significant disruptor to healthcare will be the capacity challenges associated with the 'silver tsunami' of baby boomers hitting the age of healthcare consumption," said Jonathan D. Washko, MBA, FACPE, NRP, AEMD, Assistant Vice President, CEMS Operations, Northwell Health; Assistant Professor, Department of Emergency Medicine, Pre-hospital and Disaster Medicine, Zucker School of Medicine at Hofstra, Northwell Health. "In this environment, coupled with lowering revenues, staffing shortages and higher expenses, healthcare is being forced from an abundance mindset to one of scarcity."

A leadership exodus looms as HR leaders consider leaving their jobs HR Dive; by Carolyn Crist; 8/23/24 About 57% of CHROs and 75% of people leaders are considering leaving their roles in the next 8-12 months, which could damage business continuity and growth, according to an Aug. 20 report by Blu Ivy Group. Major HR attrition could destabilize organizations due to a drop in institutional knowledge, a decrease in productivity and a weakening culture, according to the report. ... In more than 500 surveys and 50 interviews with CHROs and people leaders in the U.S. and Canada, 43% said they spend less than 10% of their time on long-term strategic planning. Continuous crisis management compromises strategic oversight and undermines growth, the report found.

New ASCO Guidelines stress importance of early palliative care Hospice News; by Jim Parker; 8/26/24 The 2024 update to the American Society of Clinical Oncology’s (ASCO) clinical practice guidelines place renewed emphasis on palliative care. The guidelines are updated periodically by a multidisciplinary team, including a patient representative and experts in medical and radiation oncology, hematology and palliative care. For the 2024 revisions, this panel reviewed 52 randomized controlled trials that evaluated outcomes among cancer patients who received palliative care, ASCO reported. “This is a pivotal time,” the panel’s co-chair Betty Ferrell of City of Hope Cancer Care told the ASCO Post. “This guideline is a call to action for everyone to think about how they are integrating palliative care for all patients with cancer. There are great advances in cancer care, but none of these will be fully effective unless we fully integrate palliative care.”

Bonners Ferry Class of 1991 celebrates classmate in hospice care Coeur d'Alene/Post Falls Press, Coeur d'Alene, ID; by Staff Report; 8/26/24 No amount of time or distance can weaken the bonds of true friendship. The Bonners Ferry High School Class of 1991 proved that recently when they gathered at Hospice of North Idaho’s Schneidmiller House for a surprise reunion. Teresa Skeen, 52, is battling terminal cancer, ... buoyed by the support of family and friends who have visited day and night since she was admitted to hospice care at Schneidmiller House. She often spoke fondly of her high school years, reminiscing about the close-knit Bonners Ferry community and the cherished friendships she forged at school. “When we heard about her diagnosis, we knew we had to do something special for her, something that would remind her of how much she means to us,” said Laura, a friend and classmate. ... Unbeknownst to Skeen, her classmates worked with Schneidmiller House staff to plan a special celebration. ...

10 CEOs transforming healthcare Becker's Hospital Review; by Kelly Gooch; 8/21/24 The CEO Forum Group, a media and marketing company focused exclusively on CEOs, has unveiled its latest list of the "Top 10 CEOs Transforming Healthcare in America" for 2024. CEOs on the list were selected after interviews with Robert Reiss, Forbes contributor and founder and CEO of the forum group, and then criteria-based evaluation and approval by the forum group's editorial board. The criteria is based on "creating new value that helps advance healthcare in America," Mr. Reiss told Becker's. Each CEO on the list was awarded by the editorial board a specific category where they led the transformation of healthcare. [These categories include:] Holistic health... Community impact... Culture... Innovation... Vision... Behavioral  health... Urban healthcare... Leading with humanity... Patient-centered care... Leadership...Editor's Note: These categories alone indicate healthcare values that are considered to be transformative for now and ahead. . Click on the title's link to read the names and their organizations.

CMS is taking action to address benefit integrity issues related to hospice care CMS Newsroom; by Dara A. Corrigan and Dora L. Hughes, MD, MPH; 8/22/24... Unfortunately, hospices are profiting from fraud at the expense of beneficiaries far too often. Recent media reporting, and research by CMS, have identified instances of hospices certifying patients for hospice care when they were not terminally ill and providing little to no services to patients. The media reports identified that these activities led to a rapid growth in potentially fraudulent hospices, particularly in Arizona, California, Nevada, and Texas. Some of the addresses listed for these hospices also appeared to be non-operational. ... In response to these findings, CMS revisited and revitalized our hospice program integrity strategy, focusing on identifying bad actors and addressing fraudulent activity to minimize impacts to beneficiaries in the Medicare program. As part of this strategy, CMS embarked on a nationwide hospice site visit project, making unannounced site visits to every Medicare-enrolled hospice. [Click here to continue reading this significant information from CMS.]

TN church helps pay off $8M in medical debt WKRN.com, Johnson City, TN; by Kenzie Hagood and Jayonna Scurry; 8/22/24 A Tennessee church paid off around $8 million in community members’ medical debt in partnership with a national program. The Altar Fellowship Church is changing many lives across the Tri-Cities by helping people relieve medical debt. ... Senior Pastor Mattie Montgomery cast the vision to his church years after losing his father. “The story meant so much like to our senior pastor, Pastor Matty, because [he lost] his father to cancer at the young age of eight,” Morrison [another pastor] said. “And while he was on hospice care at home, a businessman from their town bought Christmas gifts for their entire family. And so that was an inspiration for him ..." The church raised about $50,000 in one day, unknowingly helping to pay off the debts of some of its own congregation.

Couple marry in ICU an hour before bride’s father takes his last breath Our Community Now, North Providence, RI; by OCN staff; 8/22/24 A Rhode Island hospital held an emergency wedding that had to be performed before the bride’s father died from muscular dystrophy. Sabrina Silveira-DaCosta says her father, 58-year-old Frank Silveira, was Portuguese-born and raised, a serious chef and a five-star dad. ... With Silveira’s health rapidly declining, his family realized he wasn’t going to make it his daughter’s wedding on Sep. 7, so plans changed. “Everyone was able to bring the wedding to him in the hospital, and he got to walk me down the aisle,” Silveira-DaCosta said. From his intensive care unit bed, Silveira escorted his daughter down the hospital hallway Monday into the hands of her fiancé, Sam DaCosta. ... Silveira-DaCosta’s father died about an hour after he walked her down the aisle. “It’s very complex. It’s a lot of emotion. Our community hospitals don’t get enough credit because any big hospital couldn’t have done this for us,” she said.

Amedisys CIO Michael North exits with $3m severance package TipRanks; announcement provided by Amedisys; 8/22/24 Amedisys, Inc. is seeing the departure of its Chief Information Officer, Michael P. North, at the end of August 2024. He will be leaving with a substantial severance package worth over $3 million, provided he adheres to the terms of the mutual separation agreement. This agreement is still subject to a revocation period and will be detailed further in the company’s upcoming quarterly report.

Between the hospital and the street: Addressing a crucial gap in care healthleaders.com; by Eric Wisklund; 8/23/24 A unique program in Salt Lake City is managing care for underserved patients who live on the street or in an unsafe location, and helping hospitals reduce ED crowding, improve care coordination and reduce costs in the process. The INN Between is a nine-year-old program that began as a 16-bed Catholic convent and is now an 80-bed “assisted living facility” of sorts, offering everything from hospice care to rehabilitation and care management services. The organization addresses a significant care gap for health systems and hospitals who see these patients in their Emergency Departments and ICUs—and who often discharge them to an uncertain care landscape. ... The INN Between, which operates year-to-year on a budget of $1.6 million (recently cut down from $2 million), exists on a mishmash of charitable donations, grants, and the occasional federal or state subsidy. Editor's Note: Pair this compassionate solution with the scathing article about hospice fraud and abuse of homeless persons, Fraudulent hospices reportedly target homeless people, methadone patients to pad census, by Jim Parker at Hospice News.