Literature Review

University of Texas club puts life's memories into book for people receiving hospice care Austin American-Statesman; by Nicole Villalpando; 4/27/24 "What would you like your legacy to be?" Galilea Dupree asks Bob Bell, as she and two other University of Texas students gather around the dining room in Bell's North Austin home. ... Bob, 92, has congestive heart failure. After three strokes and two heart attacks, he began receiving services with Hospice Austin in November. He is one of nine people in hospice who are having their stories told by UT students as part of the Last Writers club. The club works with Hospice Austin and Compassus hospice to identify people who would like to have their stories told.

Optum shutting down telehealth business Becker's Health IT; by Jakob Emerson; 4/25/24UnitedHealth Group's Optum Virtual Care is shutting down, Endpoints News reported April 24. News of the closure of the company's telehealth business came shortly after Optum employees took to social media beginning April 18 regarding a reduction in force they say occurred across the organization. 

Federal Court halts lawsuit over Medicare home health payments Bloomberg Law; by Tony Pugh; 4/28/24 A federal court in Washington DC tossed a lawsuit against HHS over a disputed payment system that has slashed reimbursements for thousands of home health agencies since it was implemented in 2020. The US District Court for the District of Columbia ruled in a memorandum opinion on April 26 that plaintiffs in the suit by the National Association for Home Care & Hospice (NAHC) failed to exhaust their administrative rememdies because they "skipped the agency's process for seeking expedited judicial review." Because of that, the court "will grant the federal government's motion for summary judgment." [Additional content may require subscription.]

Attitudes and beliefs regarding Pain Medicine: results of a national palliative physician survey Journal of Pain and Symptom Management; by Daniel K Partain, Wil L Santivasi, Mihir M Kamdar, Susan M Moeschler, Jon C Tilburt, Karen M Fischer, Jacob J Strand; 4/25/24 online ahead of print Objectives: To evaluate referral rates, co-management strategies, and beliefs of palliative physicians about the value of Pain Medicine specialists in patients with serious illness. Conclusion: This study shows that Palliative Care physicians have highly positive attitudes toward Pain Medicine specialists, but referrals remain low. Facilitating professional collaboration via joint educational/clinical sessions is one possible solution to drive ongoing interprofessional care in patients with complex pain.

'Why we need to talk about dying': Thames Hospice and the reality of palliative careMaidenhead Advertiser; by Sam Leech; 4/27/24What is your understanding of what a hospice does?Many would suggest it is a place where people go to die – but there is much, much more to the journey of patients and loved ones at Thames Hospice [United Kingdom]. ... Catherine McLaughlin, the hospice’s chief executive, said: “This is a place where – yes, death is a big part – but it’s about how do you make memories? How do you give hope at a time when there might not be much of that? Those final days in somebody’s life is a very important time and the lasting memories are important to those who are left behind.”Editor's Note: Too often--in order to make hospice palatable to another's "sign-on-the-dotted-line-so-we-can-admit-you"--marketing professionals overtly deny that hospice is about "dying," "death," or "grief." Take note from this CEO who sensitively weaves in death, dying and bereavement for not only hospice, but also for "palliative care" with gentle, authentic conversation and questions to the public.

How to overcome the disruptive forces that can impede high-value innovation Healthcare Financial Management Association (hfma.org); by Liz DeForest; 4/28/24 ... Healthcare is full of what we call “missing innovations” — good ideas that never go beyond promising pilot tests or, like EHRs, are adopted so slowly that their progress is measured in decades, even though other industries were adopting digital solutions very rapidly. Switchover disruptions are among the reasons for these missing innovations. ... [The author interviewed authors of Why not better and cheaper? (Oxford University Press, June 2023), written by industry analysts and twin brothers James B. and Robert S. Rebitzer about their observations of health system action and inaction. James Rebitzer is the Peter and Deborah Wexler Professor at Boston University’s Questrom School of Business. Robert Rebitzer is a national adviser at the consulting firm Manatt Health.]

Generative AI is supposed to save doctors from burnout. New data show it needs more trainingSTAT+; by Casey Ross; 4/25/24After stratospheric levels of hype, early evidence may be bringing generative artificial intelligence down to Earth. A series of recent research papers by academic hospitals has revealed significant limitations of large language models (LLMs) in medical settings, undercutting common industry talking points that they will save time and money, and soon liberate clinicians from the drudgery of documentation.

HCA's CEO-to-worker pay ratio over the past 5 years Hospital CFO Report; by Andrew Cass; 4/22/24 Nashville, TN-based HCA Healthcare CEO Sam Hazen was paid between 254 and 556 times more than the health system's median employee since becoming the health system's chief executive in 2019, according to proxy statements filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. ... Here is how the ceo-to-median-worker pay ratio has changed the past five years: ...

Relief provisions not enough to mitigate damage of 80/20 policy, providers say McKnights Home Care; by Adam Healy; 4/24/24 Though newly finalized changes to the Medicaid Access Rule attempted to soften the blow of its controversial 80/20 provision, home care providers remained vehemently opposed to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services’ strict new spending mandate. “Overall, while there are many positive provisions within the final rule as well as mitigations to make the payment adequacy provision less onerous, NAHC remains extremely concerned about the negative consequences of the pass-through policy,”  the National Association for Home Care & Hospice said in an analysis for NAHC members released after the rule was published. 

Kaiser notifies 13 million patients of breachBecker's Health IT; by Naomi Diaz; 4/25/24Oakland, CA-based Kaiser Foundation Health Plan is notifying current and former patients that it shared information with third-party advertisers. Kaiser Foundation Health Plan reported to the HHS' data breach portal that 13.4 million current and former patients were affcted by the breach. The cause of the breach, according to an April 25 report from TechCruch, was the use of online technologies on its websites and mobile applications that "may have transmitted personal information to third-party vendors."

E-book: "Combating loneliness in senior living residents: A call to action"McKnights Senior Living; 4/24/24Discover in [this] e-book:

Retired hospice worker now a hospice volunteer Sanford Health; by Jason Anschutz; 4/25/24"It's always been in my heart," says Nicolle Aukland of Fargo, ND. ... Aukland began her professional career as a medical social worker at MeritCare before the hospital merged with Sanford Health. She then transitioned into a similar role with Hospice of the Red River Valley. She would eventually leave the health care industry, but her passion for hospice never left her. ... Now in retirement, Aukland dedicates her free time to hospice patients as a companionship volunteer at two different organizations, including Sanford Hospice House in Fargo.Editor's Note: Do you encourage your retired employees to volunteer? Or perhaps retired employees from your community's other healthcare systems? They provide you with rich experience; you can provide them with meaningful volunteering. If so, be sure to orient them to the differences between their prior professional roles and the scope of practice for your organization's volunteer roles.

Life is like riding a bicycle: to keep your balance you must keep moving. - Albert Einstein