Literature Review

Provider of in-home imaging services and 24/7 radiologist access raises $200M Radiology Business; by Marty Stempniak; 7/9/24 HarmonyCares, a provider of in-home X-ray services that spans 15 states, has raised $200 million in new capital, leaders announced Monday. Based in Nashville, Tennessee, the company is focused on physician-led care for vulnerable patients who cannot travel to a traditional healthcare facility. HarmonyCare Diagnostics brings the latest digital X-ray technology to patients’ homes or long-term care facilities, offering rapid results with board certified radiologists “available 24/7.”

Health systems oppose new cybersecurity rules Becker's Health IT; by Giles Bruce; 7/8/24 Health systems and industry trade groups are objecting to new cybersecurity reporting requirements proposed by the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency. The recommended rule under the Cyber Incident Reporting for Critical Infrastructure Act of 2022 would, among other things, require covered entities to report cyberattacks within 72 hours and ransom payments within 24 hours. The proposal, which is estimated to cost the industry $1.4 billion, would exempt small and critical access hospitals.

DOH releases 2023 Our Care, Our Choice Annual Report State of Hawaii, Department of Health, Honolulu, HI; 7/8/24 More patients utilized the Medical Aid in Dying (MAID) program last year than in 2022, according to the 2023 Our Care, Our Choice Act (OCOCA) Annual Report, prepared by the Hawaiʻi Department of Health (DOH) Office of Planning, Policy and Program Development, July 1, 2024. Last year, 91 patients received aid-in-dying prescriptions, which is 31 more than the 2022 total. The Office of Planning, Policy and Program Development said that this is also in line with national data trends and may be due to the increased accessibility that took effect June 1, 2023. The annual report provides statistics for the OCOCA, which was enacted January 1, 2019. The act allows eligible individuals with terminal illnesses to request medicine that will help them control when and how they choose to die. Amendments to the OCOCA went into effect on June 1, 2023, resulting in the following changes: [Click on the title's link to continue reading.]

[United Kingdom] Hospices on the brink of financial meltdown warn of service cuts and mass redundancies Daily Express, United Kingdom; by Giles Sheldrick; 7/7/24 The growing crisis engulfing the hospice sector has led to another major facility closing beds and warning of widespread redundancies. Hospiscare, which helps those with terminal illnesses in Devon, has been forced to change its end-of-life service in response to “insufficient funding and rising costs.” It  is the latest to act on an emergency that is having a major impact on the families it helps. The hospice has already taken drastic steps, including slashing the number of beds on its ward in Exeter. It is now having to change how it delivers part of its at-home care for patients during the last days of their lives, which is likely to result in staff redundancies. ... Most facilities providing end-of-life care are operating in the red and look set to follow suit in a crisis that would flood the NHS. Toby Porter, chief executive of Hospice UK, said: “We’ve recently seen the worst financial results for the sector in 20 years, with hospices facing a collective deficit of £77million.

3 pillars of effective hospice sales Hospice News; by Jim Parker; 7/8/24Hospices seeking to grow should consider building a culture of compliance driven by data, effective system design and accountability, including for its sales force. Compliance and sales should walk hand-in-hand, according to a recent report from the Transcend Strategy Group. This can help prevent sales staff from running afoul of regulations inadvertently as well as support sustainable growth, according to Tony Kudner, chief strategy officer for Transcend. ... “[Without] understanding of what the rules of the road are, you’re going to run into trouble,” he said. “Though no one-size-fits-all approach exists, providers can adapt three overarching strategies to support this kind of culture.”

Home health providers to pay $4.5M to resolve alleged false claims act liability for providing kickbacks to assisted living facilities and doctorsDOJ press release; 7/1/24Guardian Health Care Inc., Gem City Home Care LLC and Care Connection of Cincinnati LLC, home health agencies operating in Texas, Ohio and Indiana, along with their owner Evolution Health LLC, have agreed to pay $4,496,330 to resolve allegations that they violated the False Claims Act by knowingly providing illegal kickbacks to assisted living facilities and physicians in exchange for Medicare referrals.

[Consumer Reports] The last goodbye: How to plan a funeral Consumer Reports; by Janet Siroto; 7/7/24 A complete guide to giving loved ones the right send-off--from traditional services to new green burials. Six years ago, Kelly Avery and Kristin Harper, sisters from Birmingham, Ala., gathered their families by the sky-blue ocean waters of Destin, Fla., to memorialize their mother, Barbara Harper. ... They shared funny stories and music, and shed some tears as they spread their mother’s ashes from the deck of a large boat.  ... The experience not only gave the family a meaningful way to pay tribute to Barbara but also got the sisters thinking about their own memorials. The key is making some choices well beforehand, which more people appear to be doing. For instance, according to an April 2024 Consumer Reports nationally representative survey (PDF) of 2,042 adults in the U.S., 50 percent said they planned or intended to plan ahead either for their own funeral or for someone else’s. Read on for a rundown of possibilities and costs. ...

Duke University names five new Trustees [incluing Amy Abernethy]Press Release; 7/2/24Five new members joined the Duke University Board of Trustees on July 1, university officials announced Tuesday. The new trustees are Amy Abernethy, Melissa Bernstein, Michael Stone, Andrew Greene, and Rickard Stureborg... Abernethy M.D.’94, HS’94-’01 is co-founder of Highlander Health, an organization focused on advancing evidence generation for the new era of medical innovation. An internationally known oncologist, health data expert, and digital health leader, Abernethy is a champion for accelerating the pace at which safe and effective treatments reach patients. She is the former principal deputy commissioner of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, where she led initiatives in advancing clinical evidence generation and personalized health care and served as the agency's acting chief information officer. More recently, Abernethy served as chief medical officer and president of product development at Verily, Alphabet’s precision health business. Earlier she was Flatiron Health’s first chief medical officer and chief scientific officer. She was also previously professor of medicine at the Duke University School of Medicine and director of the Center for Learning Health Care in the Duke Clinical Research Institute and the Duke Cancer Care Research Program in the Duke Cancer Institute. A hematologist/oncologist, palliative medicine physician, and recipient of the 2021 Distinguished Alumna Award from Duke University School of Medicine, Abernethy has authored more than 500 publications.Publisher's Note: Congratulations Amy!

Study finds new program streamlined hospice transitions from the emergency department Medical Xpress; by Brigham and Women's Hospital; 7/8/24 For patients who are in the final stages of both gradual and sudden terminal illnesses, hospice care can provide safe, comfortable, and dignified care at the end of life. However, many patients, especially those with complex diseases and treatments, may end up in an emergency department (ED) and either die there or die shortly after being admitted into inpatient care at a hospital, despite their goals of care being better aligned with hospice care.

Hospice and Palliative Nurses Foundation receives $1.2 million impact grant Cision PR Newswire; by Hospice and Palliative Nurses Foundation; 7/8/24The Hospice and Palliative Nurses Foundation (HPNF) is thrilled to announce that it has been awarded a transformative $1.2 million impact grant from the Hospice and Palliative Credentialing Center (HPCC). The Sandra Lee Schafer Impact Grant, given in memory of the late Sandra Lee Schafer, MN, RN, AOCN®, will empower HPNF to create a legacy of sustainable giving, which will impact the hospice and palliative care community for years to come. "We are deeply honored and grateful to receive this impact grant from HPCC, given in tribute of Sandy," said Virginia (Ginger) Marshall, MSN, ACNP-BC, ACHPN®, FPCN, chief executive officer of HPNF. ... Sandra was an unwavering advocate of specialty nursing certification. Following a stellar nursing career, Sandra served as the director of credentialing of the Hospice and Palliative Credentialing Center from 2004 until her sudden passing in 2018.

Long-term care providers among 193 criminally charged, $2.75 billion in fraud recoveries so far in 2024McKnight's Senior Living; by Kathleen Steele Gaivin; 7/1/24The Justice Department has recovered more than $2.75 billion in false claims against healthcare providers and charged 193 defendants so far this year in criminal cases through its 2024 National Health Care Fraud Enforcement Action, and many of the cases involve nursing homes, home health or hospice agencies, and assisted living providers, according to a Thursday report from the department’s criminal division.

A little help from your friends... Jennifer Hale, MSN, RN, CHPN, CPHQA little help from your friends is a memorial fund set up for Jennifer Hale's family. If interested, you can read more about it and donate here. Donations accepted 6/30/24 - 7/15/24. ... We recently announced Jennifer Hale unexpectedly died Friday, 6/21/24. Vice President of Quality and Standards at Compassus, former Vice President Clinical Services at Optum Palliative Care and Hospice, and former Executive Director of the Georgia Hospice & Palliative Care Organization, Jennifer was widely known, respected, and loved in the hospice community. We share our condolences with her family, friends, and colleagues. Her obituary is posted here.

Sen. Bob Hooper House Hospice Regatta raises $140K for Upper Chesapeake Health Foundation All Sides - Maryland Daily Record; 7/5/24 The Upper Chesapeake Health Foundation’s Sen. Bob Hooper House Hospice Regatta fundraiser took place June 10 at Concord Point Park in Havre de Grace and raised $140,000. The Sen. Bob Hooper House in Forest Hill, owned and operated by the University of Maryland Upper Chesapeake Health, is a nonprofit assisted living community specializing in hospice care. It provides a coordinated program of hospice and support services, helping residents and their families through the myriad issues associated with end-of-life care. The sailboat race was hosted by the Havre de Grace Yacht... [Access to the full article is behind a paywall.]