Literature Review

Big Bend Hospice’s promise to North Florida [New parent company, Seven Oaks Health] Tallahassee Democrat; by Bill Wertman, "Your Turn"; 11/29/24 As CEO of Big Bend Hospice, I see every day how vital our mission focused hospice care is to families across North Florida. Yet, in today’s healthcare landscape, nonprofit hospices like ours are increasingly rare. Only about 30% of hospices nationwide operate as nonprofits (CDC, 2020), and for-profit hospices have made up nearly all new providers in recent years (Hospice News, 2022). These changes mean that the type of personalized, community-centered care that Big Bend Hospice provides is at risk of disappearing. In 2024 alone, 12 hospice acquisitions took place, with about half involving nonprofit organizations (Hospice News, 2024). This trend is forcing many nonprofits to either consolidate or scale back services. For Big Bend Hospice, the choice was clear: expand our offerings to meet more in-home healthcare needs, while keeping compassion and family-centered care at the forefront. To accomplish this, we established Seven Oaks Health, our new parent company. With Seven Oaks Health, we’re creating a sustainable model that enables us to support families from diagnosis through end-of-life, especially in the rural areas we’ve served for over 40 years. By broadening our services, we’re ensuring that more families have access to high-quality care wherever they call home.

Michael Dowling: We've revolutionized care for aging adults, but is America's health system ready for the senior population boom? Becker's Hospital Review; by Michael J. Dowling, President and CEO, Northwell Health; 12/2/24 Like many baby boomers and those from earlier generations, I have vivid memories from my younger years of my grandparents and other aging adults struggling with an assortment of ailments that their doctors told them were just an inevitable part of growing old. ... The transformative advancements made over the past half-century in meeting the physical and emotional health needs of the nation's rapidly aging population are remarkable — and that's especially important because more Americans are turning age 65 now than in any other time in our history (4.1 million in 2024, or 11,200 a day). And as we move toward a new year, every healthcare executive must examine whether we are collectively prepared to care for them in the years and decades ahead and take steps to recruit the medical specialists we need to meet burgeoning demand. ... Lastly, all clinicians must embrace palliative care as part of their standard practice in managing the health of aging adults with serious illness. ... 

40 largest health systems in the US | 2024 Becker's Hospital Review; by Laura Dyrda; 11/27/24 Some large health systems grew while others shrunk over the last year, and more consolidation could be ahead. But changes were minimal in either direction, and the largest health systems this year remain relatively similar to previous years. Becker's compiled a list of the largest health systems in the U.S. based on the number of hospitals reported on the system's website. ... Note: The list below is not a ranking. Data includes all hospitals within the system. [Click on the title's link for the full list of 40 health systems.]

Senior living organizations press senators for passage of Elizabeth Dole Act McKnights Senior Living; by Kathleen Steele Gaivin; 12/2/24 Senior living advocacy groups are pressing Senate Veterans Affairs Committee leaders to seek a unanimous consent agreement on the Senator Elizabeth Dole 21st Century Veterans Healthcare and Benefits Improvement Act, to expedite its passage. ... The advocates noted that the House of Representatives had passed the act Nov. 18 under suspension of the rules. The House overwhelmingly supported the bill, passing the legislation by a vote of 389–9. ... As McKnight’s Senior Living previously has reported, the pilot program would enable 60 veterans to receive assisted living services via a three-year test that also would measure their satisfaction with the effort. The legislation would require that participating facilities be located in geographically diverse regions, with at least one test site serving veterans in a rural or highly rural area and at least one being a state home.

A boom in male nurses: 8 notes Becker's Clinical Leadership; by Kelly Gooch; 12/2/24 Nursing offers various career opportunities and has traditionally been dominated by women. However, more men are entering the field due to its stability and pay potential, The Wall Street Journal reported Nov. 30. Eight notes related to the boom in male nurses:

Thanksgiving tradition brings meals to hospice families in Northeastern Pennsylvania  ABC News 16 WNEP, Scranton, PA; by Jack Culkin; 11/28/24 It's become a holiday tradition for many volunteers to fill their cars at Mansour's Market in Scranton on Thanksgiving morning, delivering meals to those in hospice care. Ray Gillette, a long-time volunteer, shared, "We've been doing this for a long time, and we've taken the boys with us. Our oldest grandson is 14. This is his 14th year that he's come to deliver with us." ... [Diane Baldi, CEO of Hospice of The Sacred Heart] says the event began as an idea. Quickly growing to not just caring for their patients, but their families too.  "19 years ago, in our very first, we may have had 20 patients. Today we have 200. So it has grown exponentially," said Baldi. ... Along with classic holiday staples like turkey, mashed potatoes, and cranberry sauce, each meal includes a hand-made card. "I like it because it has like a turkey on the front and it has like all the stuff that you would eat," Said nine-year-old Olivia Catalano. She and her classmates made dozens of these cards, each featuring a Thanksgiving message or drawing. ... With each card placed and each meal delivered, workers successfully brought more than 600 meals to hospice families across Northeastern Pennsylvania. 

VFW makes another large donation to Hospice [of the Panhandle] The Morgan Messenger; by TMM Editor; 11/26/24 The VFW Post 4019 hosted a chili cookoff in November with $17,000 of proceeds going to Hospice of the Panhandle. “We greatly appreciate what you do for veterans,” said Commander Arthur Schur. 

Ensuring equity in access to palliative care AJMC - The American Journal of Managed Care; by Laura Joszt, MA and Alexandra Gerlach; 11/28/24 Palliative care provides high-quality care that can provide relief from the symptoms of a serious illness, but just as there are issues to accessing cancer treatments, there are barriers to palliative care, as well as racial disparities in access, explained Nadine J. Barrett, PhD, MA, MS, FACCC, senior associate dean for community engagement and equity in research, Wake Forest University School of Medicine and Atrium Health, and current president of the Association of Cancer Care Centers (ACCC). ... There are misconceptions about what palliative care is that may limit the utilization of it, but also existing disparities mean fewer Black and Hispanic individuals access these services compared with their White counterparts.

Breaking free from self-doubt: A guide to authentic leadership and communication Forbes - Leadership; by Lynn Smith; 11/27/24 In my years of coaching hundreds of top executives, entrepreneurs and CEOs, I've noticed a persistent challenge that holds many back from their full potential as leaders and communicators: self-doubt. This inner critic—what I call the "Brain Bully"—creates a constant stream of negative self-talk. Even the most accomplished leaders wrestle with thoughts like "What if I say the wrong thing?" or "What if I don't sound smart?" These are exact quotes from some of my clients. The larger issue is that inner dialogue was preventing those leaders from communicating clearly and concisely. The self-doubt in their head was reading all across their faces and through their body language. In a time when 93% of communication is weighed by nonverbal cues, we had to do something about this. ... [Click on the title's link to continue reading.]

Understanding deep disadvantage at the end of life: A nationwide analysis of unclaimed deaths Social Science and Medicine; by Jennifer Bridte DrPH, Frank Heiland, PhD, and Deborah Balk PhD; 11/25/24 This is the first systematic examination of unclaimed deaths at the county level and offers a novel way to understand marginalized populations, such as the unhoused and others living in extreme social or economic deprivation. Unclaimed death rates may also provide an objective measure of social support that can be measured over time. ... This is of public health importance because unclaimed death can be seen as a negative health outcome that may be the result of cumulative disadvantage over the life course. ... Highlights:

Tidewell Foundation volunteers give back during Thanksgiving Observer, Sarasota, FL; by Jay Heater; 11/29/24Those in the parking lot of the Tidewell Hospice administration building the day before Thanksgiving in Lakewood Ranch weren't focused on the "being thankful" part of the holiday. They were concentrating on the "giving back" part. The Tidewell Foundation's fifth annual Meal Drive provided more than 500 meals that were delivered through Manatee, Sarasota, DeSoto and Charlotte counties to provide, in many cases, what might be the last holiday meal a couple or family would be able to share. Morton's Gourmet Market, the Venice Yacht Club and Michael's on East made the meals possible and then volunteers packed and delivered the meals Nov. 27. Among those in the parking lot was Bradenton's Terry Dale, who was volunteering in the event for the first time. "I am trying to give back," Dale said as she was busy handing out meals to other volunteers who drove up to take care of the delivery. "Two years ago, these people (Tidewell Hospice) were a godsend." Her husband of 47 years, Bill Dale, died at that time and Terry Dale doesn't know how she would have made it through without Tidewell Hospice. She knew the importance of the food that was being sent out with the volunteers.

[Great Britain] British lawmakers give initial approval to a bill to allow terminally ill adults to end their lives AP - The Associated Press, London, UK; by Brian Melly and Pan Pylas; 11/29/24 British lawmakers gave initial approval on Friday to a bill to help terminally ill adults end their lives in England and Wales, following an impassioned debate that saw people sharing personal stories of loss and suffering. Members of Parliament approved the assisted dying bill by a 330-275 vote, signaling their approval in principle for the bill, which will undergo further scrutiny before it goes to a final vote. Friday's vote came after hours of debate — emotional at times — that touched on issues of ethics, faith and law. There was no braying and shouting that often marks debates in the House of Commons and speeches were considered respectfully and heard in silence. ... Supporters said the law would provide dignity to the dying and prevent suffering, while protecting the vulnerable. Opponents said the disabled and elderly were at risk of being coerced, directly or indirectly, to end their lives to save money or relieve the burden on family members. Others called for the improvement of palliative care to ease suffering as an alternative.

Palliative care bypasses Black heart disease patients The St. Louis American; by Alvin A. Reid; 11/30/24 A study by Saint Louis University researchers paints a grim picture for many heart failure patients in America – and the outlook is worse for African Americans. The study, published in the Journal of the American Heart Association, found that only one in eight patients with heart failure nationwide receive palliative care consultations within five years of diagnosis. Alarmingly, Black people were 15% less likely to receive palliative care compared to white patients with similar heart health illness. Other recent respective studies illustrate the higher risk and mortality rates for cardiovascular disease in the Black population – further demonstrating that the missing palliative care options have a greater negative impact on African American health. New statistics from a medical team at EHproject show African American women are at a greater risk for cardiovascular disease than their white counterparts. It found that 47.3% of Black women have heart disease. If they do not have it currently, they are 2.4 times more likely to develop heart disease. ... A March 2023 study published in JAMA Cardiology showed that Black men remain at the highest risk of dying from cardiovascular disease. ...