Literature Review

Detroit Lions fan who dyed his hair blue during playoff run has died CBS News 11 Detroit, by Sara Powers; 3/11/24A Detroit Lions fan in hospice care, who dyed his hair blue during the team's playoff run, has died.  Larry Benjamin, 83, of Saginaw, went viral after he dyed his hair Honolulu blue to support the Lions. He was inspired by Lions wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown, who dyed his hair blue before the team's playoff game against the Los Angeles Rams. Editor's Note: We ran a couple of updates to this story during the NFL playoffs. 

Opportunity uncovered: How COVID-19 accelerated healthcare transformation Managed Healthcare Executive; by Patrick Horine, MHA; 3/6/24The COVID-19 pandemic left an indelible mark on the healthcare landscape, spotlighting critical areas for improvement while accelerating transformations that were already underway. From addressing disparities in equity and access to adopting digital health strategies, the pandemic has forced healthcare to move swiftly to meet urgent needs. First, let us look at some of the issues we had been facing and how these were changed by the unprecedented challenges of the pandemic. ...

NYC Health + Hospitals/Bellevue opens new Palliative Care Serenity Unit for patients and families NYC Health+Hospitals Press Release; 3/7/24 NYC Health + Hospitals/Bellevue today announced the opening of a new Palliative Care Serenity Unit for patients and families. ... “We created the Serenity Unit because we noted an increasing number of patients either spending their dying days at the hospital or in need of extra support and symptom management expertise that palliative care provides,” said Susan E. Cohen, MD, director of the Palliative Care Program at NYC Health + Hospitals/Bellevue. “We want to ensure that patients who are here in their final days are being treated with dignity and expertise.”Editor's Note: NYC Health + Hospitals/Bellevue is the oldest hospital in America, tracing their roots back to 1736 when a six-bed infirmary opened on the second floor of the New York City Almshouse.

10 urgent patient safety challenges in 2024 Becker's Clinical Leadership, by Ashleigh Hollowell; 3/11/24While employment for new clinicians was positive in the last year with 96% of new nurses finding work, the issue is transitioning those clinicians from education into bedside and hospital practice, which is the most pressing safety challenge of 2024, according to the ECRI's annual report on patient safety. ... Here are the 10 most urgent patient safety challenges facing providers in 2024 ...

Roscommon nurse sets out on epic cycle to Australia Roscommon Herald; 3/10/24 A 25-year-old County Roscommon nurse set out on his 23,000km cycle from his home in Arigna to Australia this morning, Sunday, March 10th. Fergal Guihen began his 23,000km cycle from Roscommon to Australia this morning. It will take him a total of 11 months to complete the challenge. Fergal, a general nurse at Sligo General Hospital, will reach Australia in February of 2025. In the process, he’s raising funds for  Mayo Roscommon Hospice Foundation.Editor's Note: 23,000km = 14,300 miles. This translates to approximately 5.12 bike rides between New York City and Los Angeles. 

Seniors more likely to let conditions escalate into emergency if their only care options are digital, poll finds McKnights Senior Living, by Aaron Dorman; 3/7/24 Although residents in senior living communities and nursing homes are becoming more accepting of artificial intelligence and other tools such as remote monitoring systems, that doesn’t mean they don’t still strongly prefer human caregivers to manage their healthcare needs, a recent poll finds. ... Among older adult survey respondents who had dealt with a recent emergency, 33% said that they felt as if the incident could have been averted if they had had access to a live, in-person caregiver to manage their health concerns and needs.

Palliative care: A compassionate approach for mesothelioma patientsSurviving Mesothelioma, by Holly Zink; 3/10/24Mesothelioma is a rare and aggressive cancer linked to asbestos exposure. It poses significant challenges to those diagnosed and their loved ones. The disease affects the lining of the lungs (pleura). But it can also occur in the lining of the abdomen (peritoneum) and other organs. Mesothelioma has an average survival rate ranging from 8 to 14 months post-diagnosis. Managing the physical, emotional, and practical aspects of this condition is important.

Patients with metastatic cancer state more accurate prognosis when in poor healthMedscape / YouTube, Dr. Maurie Markman; 3/7/24Dr. Maurie Markman discusses a paper focused on the controversial oncology topic of prognosis beliefs among patients with metastatic cancer.Editor's Note: For the transcript, click on the link beneath the YouTube's description that has the text "medscape.com/viewarticle." 

Editorial: ‘Right to die’ debate comes to Illinois. Both sides have merit, but we would vote no.

Scary ‘state’: Two-thirds of nursing home operators fear closure without staffing relief McKnights Long-Term Care News, by Josh Henreckson; 3/6/24Of nearly 450 nursing home providers surveyed, two-thirds are concerned that escalating workforce challenges may force them to close their facility. More than 70% of nursing homes reported staffing levels lower than before the COVID-19 pandemic, with fully 99% saying they are hiring for open positions.

The strength it takes to suffer JAMA Intern Med., by Alice Curtis, Amy Hamblin, MA, and William E. Rosa, PhD, MBE, APRN; 3/4/24J. Randall Curtis, MD, MPH—my dad (A.C.) and my husband (A.H.)—was an intensive care and palliative medicine pioneer whose impact as a researcher, mentor, and humanist was legend long before his death. When Randy first revealed his diagnosis publicly, he said it was exhausting being strong. ... Throughout his career and illness [ALS], Randy came to appreciate medical aid in dying (MAID) as an ethical way for physicians to care for patients. The moral edict of medicine—first, do no harm—does not mean, nor can it mandate, the ultimate prevention of death, but rather that the physician’s role is to ease suffering at all stages of living and dying. For Randy, the only end to his extreme suffering while ALS was surely killing him was the overwhelming act of hastening his own death. In his case, he was his own most compassionate physician.Editor's Note: For the other perspective, see this newsletter's article "Editorial: 'Right to Die' debate comes to Illinois."

‘Nothing less than a crisis’ as 45 percent of SNFs cite serious financial issues in AHCA survey McKnights Senior Living, by Kathleen Steele Gaivin; 3/6/24 Forty-five percent of skilled nursing facility participants in a new survey said they are “either operating in the red or barely breaking even.” The American Health Care Association survey of 441 nursing home providers, the results of which were released Tuesday, found that 42% of SNFs are operating on a total margin of 0% to 3%, and only 13% are operating with a total margin that is greater than 3%. AHCA’s State of the Sector Report also found that staffing challenges remain.

Podcast: Outcomes post-cardiac arrest and palliative medicine consultation for seriously ill patientsThe Rounds Table Podcast, Episode 81; recorded 3/7/24 This week, Drs. Mike and John Fralick discuss two recent papers exploring patient outcomes after in-hospital cardiac arrest and the role of default Palliative Medicine consultation for seriously ill hospitalized patients. Two papers, here we go!