Literature Review

Montana system cuts services (including an inpatient hospice facility), reduces workforce by 9%Becker's Post-Acute Report; by Mariah Taylor; 5/30/24Billings, Mont.-based RiverStone Health is closing two facilities, reducing other services and cutting nearly 9% of its workforce, KFF Health News reported May 30. The hospital is shuttering an inpatient hospice facility, closing a center for patients managing high blood pressure, reducing the clinic's behavioral healthcare team, removing a nurse who worked within rural schools and reducing the number of staff focused on serving patients without housing. Among the staff layoffs are several senior leadership and management roles, according to a May 10 system news release. The cuts come after a $3 million loss in Medicaid revenue this fiscal year.

No duty is more urgent than that of returning thanks. - James Allen

Forcura and HealthRev Partners announce Ecosystem Partnership Business Wire; 6/4/24 Forcura, a healthcare workflow management company, announces a strategic ecosystem partnership with HealthRev Partners, a prominent provider of revenue cycle management services for the home health, hospice, and palliative care sectors. This collaboration focuses on enhancing the referral process for agencies operating in these critical healthcare segments. 

The latest research indicates massage therapy has benefits from birth to end of life Cision PR Newswire; by American Massage Therapy Association; 6/5/24 The American Massage Therapy Association (AMTA) is sharing recent research on how massage therapy can provide benefits from infancy through end of life. Across all ages, massage therapy can be a therapeutic approach to enhancing physical and emotional well-being. Explore the latest studies on how massage therapy can help improve the quality of life for infants, middle-aged individuals, and older adults. ... A nationwide survey of physicians, physician assistants, and nurse practitioners in palliative care documented recommendation rates of integrative therapies to target symptoms of palliative care patients. The survey found that massage therapy was the third most recommended integrative care modality behind mind-body interventions like meditation and biofeedback. The integrative therapies aimed to reduce pain, anxiety, mood disturbances, and distress.Editor's Note: While hiring a professional massage therapist might not be practical for your budget, explore contracting with massage therapist who is trained in working with medically-fragile persons to provide simple trainings for your nurses and nurse aides. Additionally, professionally trained massage therapists might be interested in volunteering their services, within appropriate parameters (i.e., not transferring the medically-fragile patient to a massage table, having a caregiver present to assist with communication, etc.). 

It pays to know: What 100 looks like!Rafu Shimpo; by Judd Matsunaga, Esq; 6/5/24Not too long ago, seeing a person 100 years of age was a rare thing. Now, they’re becoming more commonplace. There are an estimated 90,000 centenarians living in the U.S. It’s still a small percentage of the population, but it’s a number that’s expected to keep increasing. By 2060, there could be about 600,000 people who are 100 or older, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. Is there a secret recipe for a longer life? What’s it take to get there? That’s a question geriatrician Thomas Perls, M.D., has been investigating for decades with the New England Centenarian Study. ...

Collaboration looks to fill void left by closure of Hiland Cottage Hospice Harbor Light; by Harbor Light News Staff; 6/5/24 When McLaren Northern Michigan closed the Hiland Cottage Hospice House in March of this year, the future of trusted end-of-life residential care in this community became uncertain. In an effort to ensure this essential service is still provided, Bay Bluffs, the Emmet County Medical Care Facility, has stepped up to lead a collaborative effort to fill this void. “We are deeply committed to supporting our community through this transition,” said Lisa Ashley, Bay Bluffs administrator in announcing the partnership with Friends of Hiland Cottage, area hospice services, and other local end-of-life providers. 

NAHC President Bill Dombi reflects on tenure: We Went ‘To War’ on behalf of our providers Home Health News; by Joyce Famakinwa; 6/4/24 For more than 40 years, William A. Dombi has been one of home-based care’s fiercest advocates. He became the National Association for Home Care & Hospice’s (NAHC) vice president for law in 1987, and has been a key player in many of the advancements and milestones that have moved the industry forward. Those include the growth of the home health benefit under Medicare, the implementation of the home health prospective payment system in 2000 and much, much more. ... Home Health Care News recently caught up with Dombi to look back at his time at NAHC, and on what he believes to be the biggest accomplishments during his tenure.

Hospice groups to CMS: Don’t rush CAHPS changes Hospice News; by Jim Parker; 6/3/24Hospice industry organizations have voiced support for proposed updates to the Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (CAHPS) surveys, but raised questions on the implementation timeline. ... One key concern about the timeline is the need for vendors to develop updated electronic medical record (EMR) systems as well as methods of collecting the data, according to Katy Barnett, director of home care and hospice operations for LeadingAge. ... The proposed changes include:

Controversial conversations: Key takeaways from The Jeffrey Fudin Debates on pain and palliative care practices Pharmacy Times; Interview with Lee Kral, PharmD, FASHP, NBC-HWC, CPMC, CPE; 6/5/24In an interview with the Pharmacy Times®, Lee Kral, PharmD, FASHP, NBC-HWC, CPMC, CPE, clinical pharmacy specialist of pain management at the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics, shares her insights into pain management in palliative care for patients with cancer-related chronic pain. She highlights the crucial role of pharmacists in managing patient treatment regimens, including administration of opioids, the role of off-label prescribing, and the potential of deprescribing to improve patients’ quality of life. 

Declared dead at nursing home, 74-year-old was alive at funeral home 2 hours laterNBC News; by Dennis Romero; 6/3/24A 74-year-old woman declared dead at a nursing home was found alive two hours later by funeral home employees attending to what they believed were her remains, a Nebraska sheriff's official said. The employees of the Lincoln funeral home called 911, and the woman was taken to a hospital alive, where she remained Monday, Lancaster County Chief Sheriff’s Deputy Ben Houchin said at a news conference. "At this point, we have not been able to find any criminal intent by the nursing home, but the investigation is ongoing," he said.

Oregon reviews UnitedHealth deal for Amedisys home health, hospice The Lund Report; by Nick Budnick; 6/4/24State officials are asking members of the public to weigh on the proposed acquisition of Amedisys — a hospice and home health and company that operates in Roseburg, Salem and Portland — by an increasingly controversial health care giant called UnitedHealth Group. Inc.  UnitedHealth operates Optum, a subsidiary whose takeover of a clinic chain in the Eugene area has sparked numerous complaints. The state recently approved the company's acquisition of  The Corvallis Clinic, an 11-clinic company operating in three counties. Now, it proposes to take over the Oregon offices of a Amedisys, a publicly traded firm, and the transaction has federal officials contemplating a lawsuit to block it. UnitedHealth and Optum are under increasing scrutiny for their market dominance and allegations of anticompetitive conduct.

SCAN wins Medicare Advantage star ratings lawsuit against CMSModern Healthcare; by Nona Tepper; 6/4/24SCAN Health Plan has prevailed in a widely watched federal lawsuit brought last year against the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services that alleged regulators did not appropriately calculate the insurer's Medicare Advantage star rating. The decision could have industrywide implications for the star ratings program if regulators decide to recalculate all carriers’ star scores for the 2024 plan year. The ruling could also affect several pending cases filed by other insurers against CMS. It also could be appealed.

Screening tool predicts older adults’ need for end-of-life care interventionMcKnight's Long-Term Care News; by Donna Shryer; 6/2/24A computerized tool can accurately identify older adults visiting the emergency department who have a high risk of dying within six months, a new study found. The tool, called the Geriatric End-of-Life Screening Tool, or GEST, performed more reliably than reviewing diagnosed serious illnesses and estimating mortality rate. GEST uses routine medical data such as age, vital signs, blood tests and past hospitalizations to calculate each person’s individualized mortality risk over the next six months. In the study of more than 80,000 emergency department visits by older adults, GEST maintained high accuracy regardless of the person’s gender, race/ethnicity or year of visit.