Literature Review

Monroe Clinic & Hospital Foundation Supports Hospice with Financial GiftMonroe (WI) TimesDecember 14, 2023Monroe, WI—Monroe Clinic & Hospital Foundation, a member of SSM Health, has presented the SSM Health Monroe Hospice Home with a donation of $120,000. ... This gift is primarily comprised of dollars raised at the annual “Little Golf” & Grill event as well as memorials and other hospice gifts throughout the year.

NAHC President Bill Dombi—History Repeating Itself on Hospice Program IntegrityHospice NewsDecember 14, 2023Issues of fraud in the hospice industry echo events that previously affected the home health space, and providers can learn from that prior experience. This is according to Bill Dombi, president of the National Association for Home Care and Hospice, who spoke Thursday in a Relias webinar. ... “What I’m seeing is history repeating itself. Back in the 1990s, the microscope ended up focusing on the Medicare Home Health Program. 

Board hears comment on noise ordinance, EPH home healthcareEstes Park (CO) Trail GazetteDecember 14, 2023Estes Park, CO—The Estes Park Board of Trustees held their regular meeting on Tuesday, Dec. 12, where they heard ... [an] update from Estes Park Health about home health care, hospice and non-medical home care. ... EPH Board of Directors Chairman David Batey described the hospital’s decision to no longer provide in-home hospice care, highlighting that there are four licensed providers of hospice care other than EPH, and that EPH will continue to provide inpatient hospice care at the facility. 

Nurses at Prime hospital approve labor dealBecker’s Hospital ReviewDecember 13, 2023Members of the United Nurses Associations of California/Union of Health Care Professionals have approved a new labor contract with Prime Healthcare’s St. Francis Medical Center in Lynwood, Calif. The contract, approved by 81% of voting union members, covers 600 registered nurses at the medical center, according to a Dec. 13 UNAC/UHCP news release. 

Caring through the endC-Ville (Charlottesville, VA)December 13, 2023Nancy Littlefield is a fourth-generation nurse, so it’s not surprising that she describes caring for people as “my calling.” What may be surprising is that her work as an ICU nurse, helping the sick and their families to heal and recover, led her to palliative care, helping the dying and their families through life’s last stage. That will be her focus as the new CEO for Hospice of the Piedmont. 

What health systems did this year to recruit, retain workersModern HealthcareDecember 13, 2023Tuition reimbursement is a top program offered this year by health systems seeking to recruit and retain employees, according to a recent survey by Aon, an insurer and consulting firm. ... Here are five areas of focus around recruitment and retention this year.

Nurses at Suburban Community and Lower Bucks Hospital authorize strike amid contract negotiation stalematePhiladelphia InquirerDecember 12, 2023Bucks County, PA—Nurses at Suburban Community Hospital and Lower Bucks Hospital sent a message to their executives: ‘Tis the season for a new contract—or a strike. The contracts affecting roughly 200 nurses at both hospitals expired Oct. 12. Last week, nurses at Suburban Community voted to authorize a strike. 

22 states to increase minimum wage on Jan. 1McKnight’s Senior LivingDecember 13, 2023Almost half of the states, along with 40 local jurisdictions, are set to ring in 2024 with increases to minimum wage, according to Polsinelli law firm. The 22 states with minimum wage increases coming in the new year: Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Vermont and Washington. 

Phones ‘connected to nothing but love’ donated to Westport LibraryWestport (CT) JournalDecember 13, 2023Westport, CT—Lynda Shannon Bluestein is nearing the end of her life. In January, the 76-year-old will travel to Vermont where, surrounded by family, she will end the suffering she has experienced from three bouts of cancer in a state where aid-in-dying is permitted. Bluestein, however, first had to sue the state of Vermont, winning her case in June, to allow a non-resident to end her life there. On Wednesday, she plans to give the Westport Library a gift that may help others, especially children, express and process grief when they lose a loved one. Bluestein will donate two “wind phones”—rotary-dial phones that are not connected to anything—that people of all ages can use to speak about their loss and memories of a loved one who has passed away. 

Tending a Garden May Help Lessen GriefBlog PostSeven PondsDecember 3, 2023Tending a garden—planting, tilling, digging, weeding, watering, and growing plants, flowers, or food—could beget us better health and wellness. ... A comprehensive compilation of research by the National Institutes in Health confirms that a regular dose of gardening reduces stress, improves physical health and bolsters our mood. In fact, gardening was shown to positively alter electrical activity in the brain. So it stands to reason that tending a garden could positively impact those who are grieving a loss. ... Reviving a garden that once belonged to a loved one may also soothe a grieving soul.

Home Health Spending Begins To Climb Again Post-PandemicHome Health Care NewsDecember 13, 2023After stalling in 2021, spending on home health care returned to a more normalized growth rate in 2022, according to a new analysis from the Office of the Actuary at the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. Specifically, national health expenditures on home health care increased by 6% to $132.9 billion in 2022. 

Memory Care Gap—GAO Report Shows Less than 2.5% of Medicare Beneficiaries with Alzheimer’s Receive Cognitive AssessmentSenior Housing NewsDecember 13, 2023Between 2018 and last year, use of cognitive assessment and care plan services tripled, but few Medicare beneficiaries who qualify received the service, according to a recent study by the Government Accountability Office. The GAO study found that, at most, 2.4% of Medicare beneficiaries with a diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease or a related disorder received this service. 

Helping hands in hospiceC-Ville (Charlottesville, VA)December 13, 2023Charlottesville, VA—It’s a conversation starter you might throw out with a group of friends hanging out at a winery, or after a large informal family supper: “What would you like to do before you die?” The answers are probably interesting, intriguing, even surprising. The discussion could inspire someone in the group to make those dreams happen. But for Beth Eck, director of end-of-life doula services for Hospice of the Piedmont, the real question is: “Have you said what needs to be said?”