Literature Review

An exploration of gratitude on well-being in hospice and palliative care familial caregiversJournal of Palliative Medicine; by Kathryn Levy, Pei C Grant, Hannah Rachiele, Gina Schuster, Jonathan L Rossi, Sheila Conboy, Andrew Gasper, Christopher W Kerr; 7/26Familial caregivers (FCGs) play a critical role in health care by providing unpaid care to loved ones with serious illness. Although caregiving is often associated with emotional and physical burden, increasing attention has been directed toward potential sources of meaning and psychological growth, including gratitude. Higher levels of gratitude were associated with greater flourishing and recognition of positive caregiving experiences and were inversely associated with caregiver strain among FCGs of hospice and palliative care patients. Future longitudinal and intervention-based research is needed to determine whether gratitude-focused approaches can improve resilience, psychological well-being, and relational connection in end-of-life caregiving.

Do not take life too seriously. You will never get out of it alive. ~Elbert Hubbard

Avow expands the future of health care in Southwest Florida with property acquisition in Lee County PRLOG Press, Naples, FL; by Avow; 8/26/26 Avow is pleased to announce the acquisition of property at 14590 Hope Center Loop in Hope Preserve, Fort Myers, representing an important step in the organization's continued expansion of services for patients and families throughout Southwest Florida. With a 44-year history of providing compassionate, not-for-profit care, Avow is expanding its presence in Lee County to make high-quality hospice, palliative care, home health, and grief and loss support more accessible to the growing community. The Hope Preserve property will provide a future home for an approximately 40,000-square-foot Avow facility designed first and foremost to serve patients, families, children, and adults throughout the region.

California and the federal government battle over hospice fraud, as victims lose coverage and care Regional Media News, Los Angeles, CA; by wrnnews.com; 8/26/26At 71 and a few years into retirement, Linda Henry felt like she was in good health, and only went to her doctor in Southern California for the occasional checkup. So it was a shock when she found out in 2024 that she had been enrolled in hospice, a specialized end-of-life care usually provided to people with six months or less to live. A Medicare worker told her the system said she had heart failure. Henry was a victim of rampant fraud in the hospice industry, a problem that’s been especially extreme in California, ... Henry believes her Medicare number was stolen after a healthcare payment portal that services insurances was hit by a cyberattack. She found out about her hospice enrollment in September 2024 after her doctor billed Medicare for an allergy test and was denied. Soon, other claims were being returned unpaid.

DOJ prioritizes hospice, home health fraud enforcement Hospice News; by MK Manoylov; 8/26/26 The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) Fraud Division has designated home health and hospice as among its top enforcement priorities. The agency plans to use innovative data analysis to target fraud schemes in these industries, according to a Thursday memorandum. The agency plans to further crack down on healthcare fraud by increasing the headcount of its Health Care Fraud Strike Force model to about 500 attorneys and staff by Aug. 24.

Ready, Fire, Aim: The CY 2027 Home Health Proposed Rule's shoot-first approach to provider enrollment Husch Blackwell | Hospice Insights; by Bryan Nowicki and Andrew Brenton; 8/26/26 CMS’s CY 2027 Home Health Proposed Rule tucks a sweeping set of Medicare provider enrollment changes inside what is nominally a routine payment rule, expanding the grounds on which CMS can deny or revoke a provider’s enrollment. In this episode, Husch Blackwell’s Bryan Nowicki and Andrew Brenton unpack several of the rule’s most consequential proposals, including new denial and revocation grounds and retroactive revocation effective dates. They also discuss why home health agencies and hospices should be paying close attention as the rule moves toward finalization.

Why Hospice Austin is training frontline staff on specialized dementia care KXAN Austin, TX; by Avery Travis; 8/26/26 A Central Texas hospice service received national recognition for investing in dementia-specific training and certification for frontline caregivers, as the impact of dementia grows in the United States. According to Hospice Austin and Austin Palliative Care, it recently became the only hospice organization in the country to be named to the National Council of Certified Dementia Practitioners' Memory Care Excellence Network. Diana Wagner, the Director of Education and Training at Hospice Austin and Austin Palliative Care, spoke to KXAN's Avery Travis and Will DuPree about the nuance needed to care for someone with dementia at the end of their life. ... Wagner said her team worked to certify more than 70% of their frontline staff in dementia care.

Executive Personnel Changes - 8/21/26

Spirituality and religiosity in end-of-life decision-making in intensive care units: a systematic review of preferences, ethical framing, and meaning-making Cureus; by Dimitrios G. Apostolakis, Nikiforos V. Angelopoulos, Spiros Georgakis, Fotios Tatsis, Foteini Veroniki, Konstantinos Stamatis, Georgios Papathanakos, Mary Gouva, Vasilios Koulouras; 8/25/26 End-of-life decision-making in intensive care units (ICUs) is a complex and ethically challenging process shaped not only by clinical factors but also by patients' values, cultural contexts, and spiritual or religious beliefs. ...  [Spirituality] demonstrated a multidimensional role, facilitating acceptance of death, promoting support for palliative care in some contexts, and contributing to meaning-making during the end-of-life process. Cultural and contextual factors moderated these relationships, and the provision of spiritual care by healthcare professionals was associated with less aggressive end-of-life care. ... Integrating spiritual assessment and culturally sensitive spiritual care into routine clinical practice may enhance shared decision-making and improve alignment between treatment decisions and patients' values, preferences, and goals of care.

Limestone County providers to receive share of state Rural Health Transformation Program grants The News Courier, Athens, AL; by Ben Bullard; 8/26/26 Alabama Governor Kay Ivey this week announced the awarding of 138 grants worth more than $144 million to healthcare providers and institutions statewide as part of the Alabama Rural Health Transformation Program (ARHTP). The awards include funding for medical infrastructure and cybersecurity upgrades in Limestone County, while also supporting numerous programs that include Limestone as part of a wider multi-county area. “Alabama is serious about creating systematic changes through the ARHTP to ensure every citizen has access to quality care. This program is enabling institutions covering every part of the state to improve healthcare for Alabamians through projects that are both innovative and sustainable,” said Ivey in announcing the grants.

Cartera Health lands three companies on 2026 Inc. 5000 Journal of Business News; by AI; 8/26/26 Cartera Health announced that White Orchid Hospice, Sterling Physical Therapy & Wellness and Sterling Staffing Solutions were all named to the 2026 Inc. 5000 list. The announcement was made Aug. 26, 2026, from Houston. - The Inc. 5000 ranks the fastest-growing private companies in America. ... White Orchid Hospice ranked No. 1,407 with 251% three-year revenue growth. - White Orchid Hospice also appeared on the 2025 list at No. 1,815, moving up more than 400 spots year over year. ... Dr. Sterling Carter said the three-company sweep reflects operating discipline across the portfolio, not just strength in one business. The result suggests Cartera Health’s business mix is resilient enough to produce growth in three different service lines at once.

Oregon OSHA pursues workplace violence prevention rule for healthcare employers Mondaq; by Littler Mendelson; 8/26/26 Oregon OSHA has proposed a comprehensive workplace violence prevention rule for healthcare employers, implementing Senate Bill 537's statutory requirements. The proposal mandates periodic security assessments, development of prevention programs, and annual training for hospitals, ambulatory surgical centers, home health agencies, and hospice programs. While the healthcare industry broadly supports violence prevention efforts, questions remain about whether the rule's training requirements exceed legislative.

Letting there be room for not knowing is the most important thing of all. ~ Pema Chödrön