Literature Review

Missed opportunities for goals-of-care conversations in a patient with end-stage juvenile Huntington’s disease: A case reportAmerican Journal of Hospice & Palliative Medicine; by Ignacio Borque, Nuria Perez ´ de Lucas, Alicia Gonzalez, Eduardo Bruera; 8/26Juvenile Huntington’s disease (JHD) is a rare, severe neurodegenerative disorder with early onset, high symptom burden, and a predictable trajectory toward advanced disability and premature death. Despite this, goals-of-care (GOC) conversations and advance care planning are often delayed, leading to reactive, crisis-driven decisions and increased emotional burden for families and clinicians. We present a 30-year-old woman with genetically confirmed JHD, diagnosed at age 14, who declined progressively over more than 15 years. Despite longstanding neurological follow-up and repeated hospital admissions, palliative care referral occurred only 20 days before death. Late palliative care integration limited anticipatory planning and shifted complex decisions into a stage with little room for deliberation, when cognitive and clinical deterioration constrained meaningful participation.

Top ten tips palliative care clinicians should know when caring for seriously ill patients with stimulant use disordersJournal of Palliative Medicine; by Rebekka DePew, Nicole Dussault, Kyle Quirk, Erin Vipler, Josh Borris, Sandra DiScala, Teddy Scheel, Katrina Nickels, Gregg Robbins-Welty, Janet Ho; 8/26Stimulant use disorder (StUD) is common in the hospice and palliative care (PC) setting, though guidance for clinicians remains limited. Stigma around stimulant use is widespread and can lead to impaired clinician/patient communication, poor symptom control, and lower quality of care. PC clinicians should be able to diagnose StUD, understand the potential pharmacologic and nonpharmacologic management options, engage with patients in a trauma-informed way, and refer to addiction medicine colleagues when appropriate. When utilizing opioids for pain management, PC clinicians should be aware of the impact of stimulant use on opioid risk and toxicity. In this article, a multidisciplinary group of PC, hospice, addiction medicine, psychiatry, ethics, and pharmacy clinicians presents ten practical tips for caring for seriously ill patients with current or prior StUD.

Integrating care across the life course supports goal-aligned end-of-life careNature - Communications Medicine; by M. Courtney Hughes; 7/26As global populations age and lifespan increases, health systems too often conceptualize “healthy aging” and “end-of-life care” as distinct phases. Yet emerging evidence from geroscience, palliative care, and health systems science suggests that aging and dying lie on a continuum of adaptation and care.

Saturday newsletters focus on headlines and research - enjoy!

The role of hospice and palliative care in addressing climate changeAmerican Journal of Hospice & Palliative Medicine; by Erik S. Carlson, Nisha Shah, Jill Denny,  Aldebra Schroll, Daniel Mahoney, Sarah Schear, Kate Jennings, Collins Uzuegbu, David Harris, Bhargavi Chekuri, Cecilia Sorensen, Janet Bull, Chris Jones; 8/26Climate change is a defining global health challenge of our time, acting as a threat multiplier that erodes decades of health gains and worsens social inequities. People living with serious illness, the population served by Hospice and Palliative Care (HaPC) professionals, are particularly vulnerable to these impacts. While leading health organizations have acknowledged the public health implications of climate change, HaPC has remained largely absent from this discourse. This narrative review and framework proposal situates the field’s competencies within the growing climate and health literature and identifies avenues through which HaPC can contribute to addressing climate change. We argue that HaPC professionals — drawing on strengths in serious illness communication, interdisciplinary collaboration, and person-centered care — are uniquely positioned to advance equitable climate adaptation and mitigation at the individual, organizational, and societal levels.

We should not be the same person the day after Yom Kippur that we were the day before Yom Kippur. We should be moving ahead, raising our lives to a higher level. ~ Rabbi Marc D. Angel

Pennant reports same-store gains as Amedisys transition enters 5th wave Home Health Care News; by MK Manoylov; 9/16/26 ... Pennant Group announced in October 2025 that it purchased home health, hospice and personal care services from healthcare giant UnitedHealth for a combined $146.5 million. The assets were divested as part of UnitedHealth’s (NYSE: UNH) $3.3 billion acquisition of Amedisys in August 2025. Pennant’s purchased assets across 54 locations in Tennessee, Georgia and Alabama. ... Pennant is now entering its fifth transition wave of Amedisys assets in western and central Tennessee, Gochnour said. This wave is not only the largest but includes multiple transitions with Amedisys Hospice and Amedisys Home Health, as well as LHC Hospice and LHC Home Health units.

Teen barber giving back with free haircuts [and raising money for local hospice] BBC News, East Yorkshire & Lincolnshire, UK; by Lara King; 9/17/26 A young barber is combining a new career with fundraising and free haircuts for people in need in Cleethorpes. Connor Lancaster went into the profession after teaching himself with a pair of clippers. The 16-year-old is now training at a barber shop in the North East Lincolnshire town. ... The teenager, who works at KL Studio, has also raised £300 for St Andrew's Hospice. ... St. Andrew's Hospice in Grimsby holds personal significance for Connor. It provided support after he was injured in a scooter crash and helped with respite care for his younger sister. "I've raised £300 for the hospice and I'm also raising money for The Trin Centre in Cleethorpes, and I'm hoping to be going to a different country to cut poor kids' hair there," he said.

Loved ones remembered with release of 1,000 monarch butterflies The Courier, Waterloo, IA; by Maria Kuiper; 9/15/26 A break in the clouds Sunday seemed too good to be true as 1,000 monarch butterflies were released during Cedar Valley Hospice’s Release and Remember event. Despite the rain, about 2,000 people showed up for the fundraiser event where butterflies could be bought and dedicated to loved ones that died during hospice care. ... “Butterflies represent to so many people that transformation between one life and the other because they’re literally going through that transformation,” Suzanne Benda, Cedar Valley Hospice’s chief growth officer, said. “I think it does show that, I mean, what a special moment as they come out and “Somewhere Over the Rainbow” is playing and we see the butterflies start to take off.”

When to stop coaching and get someone off the bus Teleios Collaborative Network (TCN); by Chris Comeaux; 9/17/26 One of the hardest leadership decisions is determining when coaching has run its course and when it’s time to help someone exit the team. Great leaders want to believe every person can succeed with enough support, enough clarity, enough encouragement, or enough time. Sometimes that’s true. Sometimes it isn’t. ... There are three principles that help leaders navigate this difficult decision with clarity and compassion. ...

Gentiva Hospice opens new Peoria location to expand end-of-life care Nexstar local, Peoria, IL; by Kennedy Caldwell; 9/16/26 Gentiva Hospice is opening a new Peoria location as the healthcare provider looks to expand access to hospice and end-of-life care across Central Illinois. The new office, located at 3930 W. War Memorial drive, held an open house and ribbon cutting ceremony Wednesday, the location will serve patients and families within an approximately 50-mile radius including Peoria, Knox, Fulton, Woodford, Tazewell, Marshall and Stark counties.

59% of health care workers say they will look for a new job in the next year, and employers guess 39% Physicians Practice; by Austin Littrell; 9/16/26 The 2026 Healthcare Workforce Barometer measures the gap between what practice leaders think their staff want, and what staff say they want. Fifty-nine percent of U.S. health care workers say they are likely to look for job openings, interview for or switch to a new role in the next year, according to the 2026 Healthcare Workforce Barometer released Wednesday by The Harris Poll. Employers surveyed alongside them estimated that 39% of their own staff would. Forty-two percent of employees said they are likely to look outside their organization; employers put it at 32%. ... Roughly 40% of the employee sample are physicians, nurses, nurse practitioners or physician assistants; approximately 60% work in other patient-facing roles.