Literature Review

The book "The In-Between: Unforgettable encounters during life's final momentsHSJ Online, by David Webster; 1/2/24Recently, I received a book from one of my daughters for my birthday, "The In-Between" by Hadley Vlahos, RN. While in Florida for a vacation, I made reading the best-selling book a priority and admittedly cried with each chapter as Hadley shares her personal life mixed in with being a Hospice nurse. Hadley made a statement ... that really struck me, ... “I have learned how important it is to be a human first and an employee second.”

Kingston man arrested for allegedly threatening bedridden fatherBNN, by Salman Akhtar; 1/2/2431-year-old Tyler Jason Vasquez, a resident of Kingston, was apprehended by the local law enforcement following a disturbing incident involving his ailing father. The event, captured by a Ring doorbell camera at their home on New Hurbane Street, had Vasquez allegedly threatening his bedridden father with a firearm. The security camera had been installed by Vasquez’s sister to keep an eye on their father, who is under home hospice care.

Investigating Medicare hospice overpaymentsHospice News, by Jim Parker; 1/2/24As auditing activity by regulators continues to spike, hospices need to know how to conduct internal investigations to identify any potential improper payments.

Young paperboy volunteers for hospice in memory of grandparents BNN, by Ayesha Mumtaz; 1/3/24Jack Hartley, a 14-year-old paperboy, has taken up a noble cause close to his heart. Channeling personal loss into community service, Jack is volunteering his time to distribute leaflets for the East Cheshire Hospice, an organization that holds deep significance for him and his family. Both of Jack’s grandparents, Philip and Olwen Hobson, received care at the hospice before their demise just three months apart in 2015.Editor's Note: I wish the word "demise" had not been used, as it has (to this reader) negative connotations similar to the word "expired," for life's natural processes of dying and death. Otherwise, this story might spark ideas for creative ways to involve younger volunteers--with appropriate parental / adult supervision--for other meaningful ways to contribute toward your hospice mission.

A not-so-silent battle: Tackling nurse burnout with innovative solutionsElectronic Health Reporter, by Brandy Sparkman-Beierle; 1/2/24... "The intersection of rising patient volumes and staffing challenges has led to a significant drop in nursing satisfaction rates. This overextension puts healthcare professionals at risk of burnout, impacting their physical and mental well-being." Brandy Sparkman-Beierle, chief clinical officer for Homecare Homebase identifies these needs:

The impact of Artificial Intelligence on healthcare and medicineMedium/Technology Buzz, by Mark R.; 1/3/24... Artificial intelligence, or intelligence dominated by machines and algorithms, has a growing significance in multiple industries. From finance to education and healthcare, AI has completely reformed the ways of working. One of the significant contributions of AI is to the healthcare and medical industry. From improving diagnostic accuracy to personalizing the treatments for patients, AI has revolutionized the structure of healthcare facilities. By analyzing complex human data and drawing accurate conclusions without much human intervention, AI technology can help medical researchers make new discoveries. AI applications are primarily centered on 3 main investment areas: diagnostics, engagement, and digitization.Editor's Note: For pro's and con's of AI in hospice and palliative care, examine other articles about AI posted in our newsletter (past and future).

Education CalendarHospice & Palliative Care Today has begun a page dedicated to hospice and palliative care focused state and national conferences. Please click the link above to access the current calendar and let us know about your events!

How do you ethically integrate a GIP hospice service into the hospital?Hospitalist.org, by William Frederick, et.al.; 1/2/24[General inpatient (GIP) hospice] ... provides holistic end-of-life care and family support in acute-care hospitals. Patients who are appropriate for GIP hospice services often have a life expectancy of hours to days, require care that cannot be delivered at home, and have symptoms that are difficult to control in any other settingEditor's Note: Examine this article for (1) a flow chart of the "GIP Hospice Process at UCSD Health System" and (2) Indications for GIP Hospice Care Indications for GIP Hospice Care."

Should patients be allowed to die from anorexia?DNYUZ; 1/3/24The doctors told Naomi that she could not leave the hospital. She was lying in a narrow bed at Denver Health Medical Center. Someone said something about a judge and a court order. Someone used the phrase “gravely disabled.” Naomi did not think she was gravely disabled. Still, she decided not to fight it. She could deny that she was mentally incompetent — but this would probably just be taken as proof of her mental incompetence. Of her lack of insight. She would, instead, “succumb to it.” [Read more of Naomi's story, followed by this examination of palliative care.]The field of palliative care was developed in the 1960s and ’70s, as a way to minister to dying cancer patients. Palliative care offered “comfort measures,” like symptom management and spiritual guidance, as opposed to curative treatment, for people who were in pain and would never get better. Later, the field expanded beyond oncology and end-of-life care — to reach patients with serious medical illnesses like heart disease, H.I.V. and AIDS, kidney failure, A.L.S. and dementia. Some people who receive palliative care are still fighting their diseases; in these cases, the treatment works to mitigate their suffering. [Read more of this discussion of emerging issue.]

BrightSpring Health Services Files To Go Public For The Second TimeHome Health Care News, by Andrew Donlan; 1/3/24BrightSpring Health Services officially filed plans for an initial public offering Tuesday. The home- and community-based services provider first planned to go public in 2021, but ultimately decided against it. Now, those plans are full speed ahead yet again. Based in Louisville, Kentucky, and backed by the investment firm KKR, BrightSpring provides home- and community-based provider services to complex populations. It provides care across all 50 states to 350,000 patients daily, and provides home-based care specifically to 250,000 patients daily across 40 states.Notable Mentions: Jon Rousseau, CEO; Michael McMaude.

Corporations award $20K in grants to make hospice care accessible in Texarkana areaTexarkana Gazette; 1/1/24A local nonprofit has received $20,000 in grants to make end-of-life care accessible. Tyson Foods, Weyerhaeuser and Union Pacific recently awarded the funding to Hospice of Texarkana's Diversity & Inclusive Care Project. The project is a comprehensive educational and awareness program to address demographic disparities in hospice and palliative care in Northeast Texas and Southwest Arkansas. It includes staffing, training, and community outreach.

Mass General Brigham's generative AI plans for '24Becker's Health IT, by Bruce Giles; 1/2/24Mass General Brigham plans to use generative artificial intelligence to compare patients to ones with similar profiles to help with their treatment, The Wall Street Journal reported. The health system also intends to release its first AI-powered diagnostic products as part of its new commercial AI office in the first half of 2024, according to the Dec. 29 story. ... With advancements in large language models, algorithms that scan medical images for insights used to take millions of dollars and several years to create, he told the news outlet. Now they can be built in a matter of months.

Biased AI models in healthcare may lead caregivers and clinicians astray, new study warnsMcKnights' Tech Daily News, by Aaron Dorman; 1/2/24Over the past year, studies have highlighted how artificial intelligence models in healthcare sometimes can increase bias. Now, a new study warns that clinicians could follow AI down the wrong path. When reviewing data for respiratory failure, a common problem for older adults, clinicians were 11% less accurate in their diagnoses when using a biased AI model than if they didn’t use AI at all, the study found. Disturbingly, this fact was true even when given explanations about how the AI came to a diagnostic conclusion.