Literature Review

These MD architects want to redesign your hospital Medscape; by Amanda Loudin; 6/5/24Little known fact: Florence Nightingale might have been the most famous clinician to notice and openly comment on the role of hospital design in patient care. In her now well-known writings on nursing, Nightingale advocated for "open windows to maximize light and ventilation," among other elements. Today, a growing group of physician-designers are paying attention to many such details — windows in patient rooms included. Their goal: To build hospitals and medical facilities where design can enhance patient and clinician well-being. ...

OKC woman charged after allegedly facilitating mother's suicide: 'Do with it what you will'The Oklahoman; by Josh Dulaney; 6/6/24A woman facing murder charges is accused of giving a firearm to her mother who then shot herself to death. In Oklahoma County District Court this week, Jaye Dee Watts, 44, was charged with first-degree murder in the commission of a crime, second-degree murder, kidnapping and aiding suicide by furnishing a weapon. Court documents reveal the shocking allegations. About 7:13 p.m. on Sept. 10 ... Oklahoma City police responded to a call about an attempted suicide involving a firearm. The caller was a hospice employee who said she had received a phone call from Watts, the victim’s daughter. According to an affidavit that was part of an arrest warrant filed by a homicide detective, Watts told the hospice employee that her mother, 72, shot herself. The hospice employee called 911 after speaking with Watts, and responding officers found Watts’ mother dead inside the home. Editor's Note: The descriptions are graphic. This is not an example of "Medical Aid in Dying" for the purpose of ending suffering, but rather an example of elder abuse paired with workplace violence.

Sexual function in serious illness: Areej El-Jawahri, Sharon Bober, and Don DizonGeriPal Podcast; Eric Widera, Alex Smith, Areej El-Jawahri, Sharon Bober, Don Dizon; 6/6/24As Eric notes at the end of today’s podcast, we talk about many difficult issues with our patients. How long they might have to live. Their declining cognitive abilities. What makes their lives meaningful, brings them joy, a sense of purpose. But one issue we’re not as good at discussing with our patients is sexual health. On today’s podcast Areej El-Jawahri, oncologist specializing in blood cancers at MGH, says that sexual health is one of the top if not the top issue among cancer survivors. Clearly this issue is important to patients.

Returning to the community: Health care after incarceration: A guide for health care reentryCMS; 6/6/24This joint publication by CMS and the U.S. Department of Justice Office of Justice Programs helps people recently released from incarceration take charge of their health, connect to health services, and find additional resources. It is available in Spanish on the Access Care webpage and more languages are coming soon.

Joel Mekler - Medicare Moments: Watch out for these latest scams New Castle News; by Joel Mekler; 6/3/24 ... Across the country, many unscrupulous hospice providers are recruiting and enrolling nonterminally ill patients for end-of-life care they do not need and then billing Medicare for services and items they may never receive. They trick beneficiaries into signing up for hospice by offering freebies, such as additional groceries, nurse visits, durable medical equipment, bus coupons, and more once they enroll. They also make false claims, such as saying “Medicare now covers cooking and cleaning services”. Or they tell beneficiaries they qualify due to age, saying “You’re now old enough to qualify for hospice!” Another tactic is giving money, with some recruiters telling beneficiaries, “You can earn $400/month if you agree to enroll in our program.” ... Tips [to consumers] to avoid hospice fraud:

Hospice of Santa Barbara celebrates 50 years with its Legacy of Compassion Campaign and a strong commitment to the futureSanta Barbara Independent; by Hospice of Santa Barbara; 6/3/24 When Hospice of Santa Barbara (HSB) officially opened its doors in 1974, it was at the forefront of a visionary movement. Only one other hospice existed in the United States at the time and a local group of Santa Barbara leaders committed to meeting the needs of people and families struggling with life-threatening illness or grieving the death of a loved one. Over the past 50 years, HSB has served tens of thousands of people. ... During this time, HSB has repeatedly adapted and grown to meet the changing needs of our community including the many community crises and disasters our community has faced. ... [As] HSB looks to their next 50 years, they see a changing landscape that greatly impacts their mission.Editor's Note: Congratulations Hospice of Santa Barbara! Thank you for pioneering our hospice movement 50 years ago and for continuing to grow and evolve your services through ongoing changes. The "one other hospice" that existed in the U.S. is Connecticut Hospice, which also continues to lead the way. Congratulations and thanks to you, too!

National aging framework outlines governmentwide initiatives promoting home-based careMcKnight's Home Care; by Adam Healy; 6/3/24The Department of Health and Human Services released a new framework for its National Plan on Aging on Thursday. The framework aims to guide a multifaceted, governmentwide approach to help caregivers and home- and community-based service providers enable older adults to age comfortably in place.

Hawaiʻi is the first state to provide palliative care coverage EIN Presswire; by Governor Josh Green, MD; 6/4/24 Governor Josh Green, M.D., and the Department of Human Services (DHS) Med-QUEST Division are pleased to announce that the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) approved a new State Plan Amendment (SPA) to cover community palliative care services through Medicaid, making Hawaiʻi the first state in the nation to do so.  ... “After several years of hard work and collaboration with many community members and experts in the field, I am proud to announce that Med-QUEST is the first Medicaid program in the country to get this benefit approved,” said Governor Green. “This will greatly improve the quality of life and health outcomes for thousands of people who face serious medical conditions in our state. Hawaiʻi continues to lead the nation in innovations in health and health care.”  

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.

Behavioral health patients a challenge to nursing homesModern Healthcare; by Diane Eastabrook; 6/4/24Challenges providing care for nursing home patients with mental health and behavioral health issues are adding to discharge bottlenecks for hospitals, and the demand for such care has led some facilities to set up specialized units with additional staff just for those patients.Editor's Note: Hospice and palliative care leaders, what end-of-life, mental health and behavioral health specific education do you provide for your clinical teams, your volunteers, and family caregivers? For starters, you need to include dementia care training such as "Validation Therapy" by Naomi Feil and/or the "Positive Approach to Care" by Teepa Snow. For mental illness, examine the journal article "End-of-Life Care in Individuals with Serious Mental Illness." Click here to "Get Involved with Your Local Chapter" of the national Alzheimer's Association.

When we are no longer able to change a situation, we are challenged to change ourselves. ~ Viktor Frankl, Man's Search for Meaning

Stepped palliative care for patients with advanced lung cancer: A randomized clinical trialJAMA; by Jennifer S. Temel, MD, Vicki A. Jackson, MPH, MD, Areej El-Jawahri, MD, Simone P. Rinaldi, MSN, ANP-BC, ACHPN, Laura A. Petrillo, MD, Pallavi Kumar, MD, Kathryn A. McGrath, MD, Thomas W. LeBlanc, MD, Arif H. Kamal, MD, Christopher A. Jones, MD, Dustin J. Rabideau, PhD, Nora Horick, MS, Kedie Pintro, MS, Emily R. Gallagher Medeiros, RN, Kathryn E. Post, PhD, RN, ANP-BC, Joseph A. Greer, PhD; 6/24A stepped-care model, with palliative care visits occurring only at key points in patients’ cancer trajectories and using a decrement in QOL to trigger more intensive palliative care exposure, resulted in fewer palliative care visits without diminishing the benefits for patients’ QOL. While stepped palliative care was associated with fewer days in hospice, it is a more scalable way to deliver early palliative care to enhance patient-reported outcomes.Publisher's note: This article was reference earlier this week in Palliative care for cancer patients is found to be as effective given virtually as in person.

National Nurses Honor Guard CoalitionJournal of Hospice and Palliative Nursing; by Betty Ferrell; 6/24As hospice and palliative care nurses, we are very familiar with the importance of rituals at the end of life or after death, which helps us to honor this sacred time. We know that funeral or memorial services offer a time to honor lives and to provide comfort to families. But how often do we pause to honor our own nursing colleagues for their lives of service?I recently learned of an incredible organization, the National Nurses Honor Guard Coalition, which is doing just this—honoring nurses through participation in their funeral services to celebrate these lives well lived and lives dedicated to our profession. ... Hearing about the Honor Guard Coalition brought tears to my eyes to think about this incredible tribute to nurses.Publisher's Note: Thanks for writing about this important group Betty! I also recently learned about the National (and state-specific) Nurses Honor Guard Coalition at the Nebraska Hospice & Palliative Care Association annual conference. A great group with a fantastic mission.