Literature Review

Do not play: Recognizing spiritual distress in serious illnessJournal of Hospice & Palliative Nursing; by Jeanna A Ford; 9/26Spiritual distress is a significant yet frequently underrecognized component of serious illness and palliative care. Although spirituality is recognized as a core domain of quality palliative care, patients often express spiritual suffering through grief, mistrust, anger, identity, trauma, or existential concerns rather than explicitly religious language. This article explores the role of spiritual assessment and open-ended inquiry in recognizing spiritual distress through the case of an 86-year-old Black male with metastatic prostate cancer who repeatedly refused to answer standardized questions regarding spiritual distress. Although he identified as agnostic, broader conversations revealed profound sources of meaning, suffering, dignity, and peace shaped by experiences of racism, institutional mistrust, family, music, and legacy. The case illustrates how spiritual distress may emerge indirectly and highlights the limitations of relying solely on structured screening tools.

Educating the hospice workforce on pediatric concurrent care: A national workshop approachJournal of Pain & Symptom Management; by Rakhshanda Ramzan, Lisa C Lindley, Logan Hoover, Jia Liang, Markeya Martin, Salina Temesghen, Meaghann S Weaver; 9/26Medicaid insures most children at the end of life and mandates concurrent hospice and curative care coverage. Uptake remains inconsistent, partly due to hospice workforce unfamiliarity with the benefit and concerns about compliance. A brief virtual workshop shifted hospice workforce perceptions of pediatric concurrent care, revealing gaps in baseline understanding and increasing awareness of implementation challenges. Findings informed development of a Pediatric Concurrent Care Toolkit and suggest that practical implementation resources, policy guidance, and family-centered communication tools may be needed to improve uptake and access to concurrent care.

Neurodegenerative disease death certification among National Football League players with dementiaJAMA Network Open; by Charlotte B. Luster, Christopher J. Nowinski, Bobak Abdolmohammadi, Evan D. Feigel, Michael J. Mastrodicasa, Brenna Finegan, Lee Goldstein, Douglas I. Katz, Robert C. Cantu, Brigid Dwyer, Yorghos Tripodis, Thor D. Stein, Michael L. Alosco, Ann C. McKee, Jesse Mez, Daniel H. Daneshvar; 9/26This cohort study of 202 brain donors found that only 30.7% of former NFL players with clinician-adjudicated dementia had NDD [neurodegenerative disease] listed as the underlying cause of death. This study suggests that NDDs are substantially underascertained on death certificates of former NFL players, which mirrors findings in the general population, suggesting that death certificates may underestimate the true burden of NDD, particularly in less-severe cases. Across 7 investigations, dementia was listed on death certificates for only 7.2% to 41.8% of individuals with documented dementia diagnoses. Similar underascertainment has been reported for Parkinson disease and Alzheimer disease (AD). In a cohort of patients with AD, only 25.5% of death certificates listed AD or dementia as the underlying cause, while 63.5% recorded it as a contributing cause. Assistant Editor's note: In nursing school many years ago, I never learned much about dementia or AD. It was kind of an "aside diagnosis"--a problem "pertaining to old people", but never the primary diagnosis. It wasn't until I got into hospice care that I realized what a devastating disease it can be, and how it affects all body systems, not just the brain. Of course, it deserves to be a disease in and of itself! This article summary points to this issue in stating that 63.5% of death certificates list AD or dementia as simply a contributing cause of death. I'm sure it is indeed a contributing cause of death in some cases. But in other cases, as the article summary suggests, it is likely the primary cause of death and simply not captured as such on the death certificate.

Hospice of Orange & Sullivan Counties brings veterans together for a salute to servicefocusmedia, Montgomery, NY; Client News; 9/30/26 Hospice of Orange & Sullivan Counties brought veterans, families and community members together on September 23 for a Veterans Brunch: A Salute to Service at The American Grill at Stony Ford Golf Course in Thomas Bull Memorial Park. The gathering honored local veterans and provided an opportunity to share experiences, form connections and learn about available support.With the surrounding mountains in view on a bright fall morning, attendees exchanged stories across generations and branches of service. Before the panel discussion, the program featured a medley of military service songs, with veterans standing for their branches.

Dancing with the Stars returns for annual Hospice fundraiser Richmond County Daily Journal, Rockingham, NC; by Ana Corral; 10/1/26 Richmond County Hospice’s annual Taste of the Sandhills & Dancing with the Stars fundraiser returned Saturday, bringing dancers and community members together for an evening of fundraising. Before audience members entered the auditorium, Jeff Smart, partner and owner of Mabry’s Drug & Home Care, shared that Hospice had already raised around $79,000. “We’re so proud we can be the main event sponsor again with Dancing With The Stars as we have for so many years,” Smart said. At the end of the night, Smart shared that the final amount raised had not yet been determined but estimated the total was under $90,000.

SBL Hospice Binga raises $31,000 for Willow Breeze Sarah Bush Lincoln; Press Release; 9/24/26 Sarah Bush Lincoln’s Hospice Binga event held in early September raised more than $31,000, with proceeds benefiting the Willow Breeze Hospice House Endowment. Earnings from the endowment help families with no or limited resources pay for their stay. ... “We’re so very grateful for our sponsors, donors, volunteers and Binga participants who come together to raise funds to help those in need,” said Amy Card, SBL Health Foundation director. “... The endowment is so important to help make it accessible to those who otherwise may not have the means to stay there.” Most insurance companies cover care in a hospice house, but many won’t cover room and board.   

When repeat hospitalizations call for a different conversation South Florida Hospital News and Healthcare Report; by Joseph Shega, MD; 10/1/26 For a person living with advanced illness, repeated hospitalizations often signal more than a change in medical condition: needs may have evolved, priorities shifted or more support is needed. Yet conversations about hospital readmissions frequently focus on metrics, penalties and utilization. Equally important is whether the care plan still reflects the patient and family’s priorities. For caregivers, those moments bring difficult questions: What happens next? How will symptoms be managed? What support will be available at home? Those questions deserve a place in every conversation about reducing readmissions and length of stay. ...

Oct. 1 brings new codes, coding edits and Medicaid limits for practices Physicians Practice; by Keith A. Reynolds; 10/1/26 New ICD-10 codes, NCCI edits and Medicaid eligibility limits all took effect Oct. 1. Here's what practices should check this week. ...

The annual journey plan —turning strategy into an organizational rhythm Teleios Collaborative Network (TCN); by Chris Comeaux; 10/1/26A great year is not created in the final quarter. It is created through a disciplined rhythm of listening, deciding, executing, learning, and renewing. A great year is not created in the final quarter. It is created through a disciplined rhythm of listening, deciding, executing, learning, and renewing. Consider a liturgical calendar. It does more than mark dates. It gives a community a shared rhythm with seasons for preparation, reflection, renewal, celebration, and recommitment. Each season has meaning because of what came before it and what follows. The calendar keeps people oriented to what matters most, even when daily life competes for attention.

‘Taking care of Granny’: hear this caregiver’s story of dementia, dignity and finding help WNDU 16 News Now, South Bend, IN; by LeAnne Gendreau and Wade Smith; 9/30/26 On this episode of The Aging Untold Podcast, Dugan Meredith, who documents caring for his mother-in-law online through the “Taking Care of Granny” social media feeds, joins us to talk about what it’s really like to become a caregiver and how his family found their way through it. Caring for an aging loved one can reshape a family, and it’s a responsibility more men are shouldering than ever before. Today, an estimated 21 million men are in caregiving roles, according to AARP and the National Alliance for Caregiving. They are navigating the daily challenges of aging and illness alongside their own jobs and children.