Literature Review

How to prevent delirium by improving sleep for patients with serious illnessCAPC blog; by Jeremy M. Hirst; 6/11/25A palliative care psychiatrist shares eight behavioral interventions to improve sleep—and offers guidance on prescribing pharmacological treatments. Sleep is essential for rest and repair, but for many patients with serious illness, getting quality sleep is a struggle. Poor sleep can compromise functional status and contribute to or exacerbate the risk of delirium—a concern that's both commonly reported by patients and supported by research. As clinicians, we must address sleep to help prevent delirium, as it directly impacts mental clarity, healing, and quality of life. In this blog, I share behavioral interventions I've used to help patients improve sleep and discuss when pharmacological treatments may be appropriate.

In the passenger seat - The vital role of Certified Child Life Specialists (CCLS) in hospice careIllinois Hospice and Palliative Care Organization podcast; 6/20/25We’re pleased to share the latest episode of In the Passenger Seat, where we explore the vital role of Certified Child Life Specialists (CCLS) in hospice care. In this thoughtful conversation, our guest speakers Rachael Miller and Allison Bush, of Lightways Hospice, share how Child Life professionals help children and families navigate the challenges of serious illness, dying, and grief.[Note: Link downloads this podcast.]

As the US ages, a growing movement aims to care for caregiversJAMA Network; by Virginia Hunt; 6/20/25People caring for a family member with special needs such as a disabled child, a convalescing partner, or an aging parent often feel alone—but they aren’t. In fact, up until the COVID-19 pandemic, unpaid family caregivers made up nearly 1 in 5 US adults, or about 53 million people. Experts estimate that this number has since grown. It certainly has for people supporting older adults: between 2011 and 2022, this subset of caregivers increased from 18.2 million to 24.1 million, according to a recent study.

MedPAC releases June 2025 report on Medicare and the health care delivery systemMedPAC press release; 6/12/25The Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPAC) today releases its June 2025 Report to the Congress: Medicare and the Health Care Delivery System. Each June, as part of its mandate from the Congress, MedPAC reports on issues affecting the Medicare program as well as broader changes in health care delivery and the market for health care services.

BrightSpring’s president of hospice services resignsHospice News; by Jim Parker; 6/20/25Michael McMaude has resigned as the president of hospice services of BrightSpring Health Services, effective Friday. He will continue to provide services to the company as a non-employee consultant, according to a U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission filing by BrightSpring... BrightSpring is a home- and community-based health care services platform that serves more than 400,000 patients daily across all 50 states. The Louisville, Kentucky-based company provides hospice, home health, primary care, rehabilitation, pharmaceuticals, behavioral and home health. BrightSpring went public last year with a $1 billion initial public offering (IPO).

MedPAC Report: Medicare Advantage enrollees receive 11% fewer home health visits Home Health Care News; by Morgan Gonzales; 6/13/25 The Medicare Payment Advisory Commission’s (MedPAC) June report to Congress examined home health care use among Medicare Advantage (MA) and traditional Medicare patients and found that MA enrollees receive 11% fewer home health visits compared to Medicare fee-for-service. ... 

Hospice service to vulnerable people awarded The Chronicle-Journal, Thunderbay, Ontario; by Doug Diaczuk; 6/13/25 An organization that provides palliative care is being recognized for its work at ensuring everyone, including those who may not have a home to call their own, receive the services they need at the end of life. Hospice Northwest [Mount Vernon, WA, USA] is the first recipient of the new Equity in Action Award created earlier this year by Mount Pleasant Group and Hospice Palliative Care Ontario [Canada]. The award is meant to highlight work being done to promote better access to palliative care in communities across the province.

Hospice & Palliative Care Today welcomes our new Guest Editor, Ira Byock, MD, a palliative care physician and emeritus professor of medicine and community & family medicine at Dartmouth's Geisel School of Medicine. Throughout his career he has written about the ethics and practice of caring for seriously ill and dying patients for medical journals. Since the early 1990s, he has contributed op-eds to national newspapers and gradually began writing story-driven books for the general public. His books include Dying Well (1997), The Four Things That Matter Most (2004), and The Best Care Possible (2012). For more, visit IraByock.org. See his post below for "Medicare Home Health Care is the ideal platform for home-based palliative care at the end of life."

How thanatology is driving hospice care innovation Hospice News; by Holly Vossel; 6/13/25 Thanatologists examining dying and grief practices have uncovered significant trends shaping hospice and bereavement care models in recent years. Thanatology is derived from the Greek word for death, “thanatos.” It is commonly described as the study or description of death, dying and loss and the psychological, social, cultural, biological and spiritual aspects of these processes. Editor's Note: A significant addition to this thanatology article for you to know is ADEC, the Association for Death Education and Counseling: The Thanatology Association, at www.adec.org, celebrating its 50th anniversary in 2026. This article describes thanatology as "recent years" and that "several studies have examined examined aspects of the dying process ..." Thanatology--and ADEC's contributions to our end-of-life care field--are much more than "recent," "several studies," and "aspects." ADEC emerged within the same era as Kübler-Ross's first book and the first hospices in the US, years before the Hospice Medicare Benefit. ADEC's thanatology ground-breaking leaders and members include thousands of national and international researchers, editors/authors, academicians, and clinicians throughout the evolution of our end-of-life care field, e.g., William Worden (founding member), Ken Doka (past president), Robert Neimeyer (past president), and so many more. When you see the "FT" or "CT" credential, know that this person has earned the advanced professional credential "Fellow in Thanatology" or "Certified in Thanatology." Recognize the professionals in your organization with these important thanatology credentials. Support your professionals who seek it.

2025 World Hospice and Palliative Care Day: Using the Toolkit Effectively webinar Worldwide Hospice Palliative Care Alliance (WHPCA); press release / email; 6/17/25The Worldwide Hospice Palliative Care Alliance (WHPCA) invites you to attend a 2025 World Hospice and Palliative Care Day: Using the Toolkit Effectively Webinar and you must register in advance, HERE. The theme for WHPCD is Achieving the Promise: Universal Access to Palliative Care, and this year’s World Day will be on 11 October. World Hospice and Palliative Care Day (WHPCD) is a unified day of action in support of hospice and palliative care. Palliative care is an interdisciplinary caregiving approach that optimises quality of life and mitigates health-related suffering among people with very serious illnesses and their carers. WHPCD has been marked every year for the last 19 years.

Families demand end to Medicare waiting period for early-onset Alzheimer’s patients Washington Examiner; by Elaine Mallon; 6/15/25 Jason Raubach was diagnosed at 50 years old with early-onset Alzheimer’s disease — a diagnosis that affects nearly 200,000 Americans. He received the diagnosis in 2018, completely upending life for his family. His youngest child was just a freshman in high school. ... Shortly before receiving an official diagnosis, Jason Raubach lost his job, having to move his family onto a consolidated omnibus budget reconciliation act health plan, or COBRA plan, which allows a person to keep their health insurance even after losing their job. “It wasn’t cheap,” Elizabeth Raubach said.However, once diagnosed, Jason Raubach had to wait two and a half years before he could receive coverage under Medicare, health insurance for those 65 years and older or those with qualifying disabilities. But Elizabeth Raubach, along with dozens of other caretakers for people diagnosed with Alzheimer’s, called on Congress in a letter to eliminate the 29-month waiting period required for those under the age of 65 to receive coverage under Medicare. ...

A truly educated person is one who knows how much they do not know. ~Morimer J. Adler

Palliative care in liver transplantationCurrent Transplantation Reports; Michelle Ng, Elliot Tapper; 5/25 Palliative care is an underutilized resource due to the misconception that being a liver transplant candidate precludes patients from accessing these services. However, early integration of palliative care has become increasingly important for both pre- and post-liver transplant patients as it not only improves patient outcomes, but also promotes quality of life that extends beyond graft or patient survival. We discuss strategies to manage pain, ascites, hepatic encephalopathy, pruritis, muscle cramps, sexual dysfunction, depression, anxiety, insomnia, and malnutrition. These symptoms are best addressed with a multi-modal approach with non-pharmacologic therapies as an adjunct.