Literature Review

How death doulas support entire familiesCure, by Alex Biese; 2/27/24... Death doulas, also known as end-of-life doulas, “provide companionship, comfort, and guidance to those facing a terminal illness or death” via non-medical holistic support encompassing “emotional, spiritual, and practical care,” according to the International End-of-Life Doula Association.

BONUS: 2024 Black History Quotes from "Today's Encouragement"

HCA unveils executive performance incentive pay for 2024 Becker's Hospital Review, by Laura Dyrda; 2/27/24 Nashville, TN-based HCA Healthcare revealed its plans for the 2024 Executive Officer Performance Excellence Program in a Feb. 26 Form 8-K filed with the SEC. Top executives for the 182-hospital health system will be eligible to earn performance awards based on achieving specific targets, weighted as:

Unexpected Fatality Review Committee Report UFR-23-017Washington State Legislature; 2/27/24... The purpose of the unexpected fatality review is to develop recommendations for Department Of Corrections (DOC) and the legislature regarding changes in practices or policies to prevent fatalities and strengthen safety and health protections for incarcerated individuals in DOC’s custody. ... Consultative remarks that do not correlate to the cause of death but should be considered for review by the Department of Corrections: DOC should continue implementing the end-of-life care program. Editor's Note: 

The best changes 32 healthcare leaders made this year Becker's Payer Issues, by Rylee Wilson; 2/27/24Question: What is one change you made in the last two years that had great results?Leaders in the payer space are making changes to simplify members' experiences, improve equity and level-up the way their teams work together. The 32 leaders featured in this article, part of an ongoing series, [answered this question].

Embracing the platinum rule in palliative care: Treating patients the way they want to be treated Anschutz, by Tari Advani, MD; 2/26/24 One of the first take aways from this journey, for me, in a mid-career directional change from emergency medicine to palliative care was a move away from the golden rule and towards the platinum rule. Treat patients the way they want to be treated, not the way we want to be treated. It is so simple, it allows people to exist in their own context, with their own histories and their own wishes. And, we, as caretakers, take the kind of care of them that they want. Where had that idea been during the past 20 years of my career? How many situations had I judged, wrongly, based on my own preferences, not the preferences of the patient.

Legislation aims to increase scrutiny of private equity healthcare acquisitionsMcKnights Senior Living, by Lois A. Bowers; 2/27/24Legislation introduced ... in [California] would give the attorney general oversight of private equity and hedge fund acquisitions of long-term care and other healthcare facilities. Backers of AB 3129 say that it would “safeguard fair competition and root out anticompetitive practices by dominant corporations” as well as “ensure that the acquisitions are in the public interest.” Under the bill, the AG could grant, deny or impose conditions to a change of control or acquisition between a private equity group or hedge fund and a long-term care or other healthcare facility.

2024 STATUS List: The ultimate list of leaders in life sciencesSTAT, 2/27/24The 2024 STATUS List features 50 influential people shaping the future of health and life sciences across biotech, medicine, health care, policy, and health tech. The list is wide-ranging: from executives and VCs who set their industries’ priorities, to scientists expanding the scope of CRISPR technology, to researchers determined to eliminate racial bias from clinical algorithms. 

[Maryland] Medical aid-in-dying bill short on votes, unlikely to pass Senate committeeMaryland Matters, by Danielle J. Brown; 2/26/24A controversial bill for medical aid-in-dying, which would allow qualifying terminally-ill patients to prompt their own death with the help of a physician, will likely be stalled for a least another year, as some senators “continue to wrestle” with the issue, Senate Judicial Proceedings Committee Chair Will Smith (D-Montgomery) said Monday night.

Communicating with patients with hearing loss or deafness—Can you hear me? JAMA Intern Med, by Dianne P. O'Leary, PhD and Timothy J. O'Leary, PhD, MD... Virtually all health care professionals want to provide the best possible care and to communicate as effectively as possible. However, ... frequent communication failures are leading to inferior care for the hearing impaired. Effective communication might require some or all of the approaches listed in [this article].

The future of end-of-life care: How advanced directives are revolutionizing patient autonomyBNN, by Mazhar Abbas; 2/23/24Discover hos advanced directives leverage AI, telemedicine, and patient-centered care to empower individuals in making informed end-of-life healthcare decisions, overcoming challenges, and shaping the future of healthcare.

Ransomware gang behind Change Healthcare attack: ReportBecker's Health IT, by Naomi Diaz; 2/26/24The BlackCat ransomware gang is claiming responsibility for an attack on Change Healthcare, TheRegister reported Feb. 26. Two people familiar with the matter told news outlet Reuters that BlackCat, which operates as a ransomware-as-a-service group, was behind the Feb. 21 cybersecurity incident on Change Healthcare. ... A Feb. 26 update on Optum's website indicates that the Change Healthcare incident, which has disrupted the organization's payment and pharmacy processing operations, is still ongoing.