Literature Review

Staff education an anchor amid widespread hospice audits Hospice News; by Holly Vossel; 8/14/24 ... More than half of hospice providers reported having multiple types of audits within a six-month span in a survey earlier this year. ... Supplemental Medical Review Contractor (SMRC) and Targeted Probe and Educate (TPE) audits are among the most common types of audits that hospices undergo simultaneously alongside others. ... Staff need a firm understanding around the potential red flags on regulators’ radars and how to avoid common compliance errors in their roles, ... Compliance training should be focused on staff’s overall responsibilities alongside the larger bottom line of quality, she said. ... Notable mentions: Jason Bring, co-chair of post-acute and long-term care at the law firm Arnall Golden Gregory LLP (AGG)l; Megan Turby, vice president of quality and compliance at Gulfside Healthcare Services; Dr. Lisa Barker, chief medical officer at Gulfside Healthcare Services

Franciscan Health opens new senior wellness center in Greenwood [PACE] Daily Journal; by Ryan Trares; 8/12/24 The Franciscan Senior Health & Wellness Center, part of the Program of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly, also known as PACE, is a newly opened facility in Greenwood [IN] focused on providing older adults with all-encompassing care. ... Exercise bikes, balance bars and massage tables fill a spacious fitness area. A primary care clinic is available in case seniors need to meet with a physician for medical conditions. Camaraderie and friendship is forged with daily activities, music, games and more inside a spacious day center.

Study: AI adoption spends jump among enterprises as eliminating data privacy concerns remains a foremost opportunity for driving long-term growth and ROI BusinessWire, San Francisco, CA; by Kayla Spiess; 8/14/24  Searce, a modern technology consulting firm that empowers businesses to be future-ready, today released its State of AI 2024 report. Polling 300 C-suite and senior technology executives – including Chief AI Officers, Chief Data & Analytics Officers, Chief Transformation Officers, and Chief Digital Officers – from organizations across the US and UK with at least $500 million in revenue, the report examines some of the biggest trends, successes and challenges facing businesses in their decision-making, strategy and execution as they try to unlock AI growth. [Key takeaways:]

Capitalizing palliative care startups Hospice News; by Jesse Floyd; 8/14/24 As a sector, most standalone palliative care providers are still maturing from startups into long-term, sustainable businesses. ... This means gathering the necessary startup capital to take a new palliative care provider from idea to execution is often the first tangible goal for hopeful entrants into the space. When Jonathan Fluhart and Tiffany Hughes set about getting PalliCare, their Texarkana, Texas-based palliative care provider from theory to reality, they ran headlong into this obstacle. ... “Initially, what we thought we would do is build a palliative program that would nest between the home health and hospice,” Fluhart said. “We started to go into the community to talk with facilities and places that we felt would benefit from our services. Once they learned that we were tied to a home health provider, especially a hospice, it turned them off.” They decided the answer was two-fold: Sever ties with the hospice care provider they worked for; then start casting about for investors. ... 

Hospice of Greater Cleveland: A new partnership between Judson and McGregor Senior Living Communities Morningstar, Cleveland, OH; by PR Newswire; 8/15/24 For Judson and McGregor Senior Living Communities, organizational aspirations have always been to provide continuity of care and quality service through our dedicated teams. ... We are pleased to announce that the two organizations have embarked on a new joint venture. ... This strategic partnership, built on the strengths of both organizations, is designed to provide the utmost comfort, dignity, and support to our hospice residents during their end-of-life journey, ensuring a seamless and enhanced experience for all. ... Hospice of Greater Cleveland will begin its work on August 15, 2024. This partnership reflects the ongoing support of our collective organization and the missions that drive our commitment to seniors in Northeast Ohio.

Person-centered, goal-oriented care helped my patients improve their quality of life Journal of the American Board of Family Medicine; by Lee A. Jennings and James W. Mold; orignially posted 5/24 issue, again on 8/15/24 When the goal is to help patients improve their quality of life, it makes sense to focus directly on the activities and relationships that are most important to each patient. This can be accomplished most effectively by following a three-step process that includes 1) connecting with the patient around what matters to them, 2) co-creating a goal-oriented plan, and 3) collaborating with patient, family, team members, and consultants to increase the probability of success. Once this approach has been mastered and the necessary systems, processes, and relationships are in place, this should not take more time than a problem-oriented approach, and it will almost certainly be more satisfying for both physician and patient. Editor's Note: Simple. Effective. Meaningful.

8-year-old boy's dream of skydiving finally comes true after lazy eye led to terminal cancer diagnosis (exclusive) People; by Angela Andaloro; 8/14/24 "In those moments, he's not a cancer kid," mom Amanda tells PEOPLE of Paxton's big adventures. ... Faced with limited time, Paxton's family are helping make his bucket list dreams, like skydiving, come true and tell PEOPLE about what it means to be able to do so. ... [Click on the title's link to see photos and read more.]

Want to keep talent? Develop your leaders Forbes; by Roberat Matuson; 8/12/24 You're investing heavily in recruitment, yet your top talent might be slipping away. Why? Because 7 in 10 U.S. workers are ready to leave if they have a bad manager. Younger employees are leading this charge, as highlighted in LinkedIn's latest Workforce Confidence survey. With gig work on the rise and many young professionals living at home, they have the freedom to choose jobs that value them. The solution? Transform your managers into leaders worth following. ... 5 Ways to Develop Your Managers into Strong People Leaders:

The tangled web of pediatric palliative care payment and policy Hospice News; by Holly Vossel; 8/13/24 A complex web of state regulations and reimbursement systems can challenge pediatric palliative care access for seriously ill children and their families. The nation’s fragmented health care system lacks clear guidance when it comes to navigating chronic, complex conditions in children, adolescents and young adults, according to Jonathan Cottor, CEO and founder of the National Center for Pediatric Palliative Care Homes. Much of the current state palliative regulations and reimbursement pathways focus on adult patient populations, representing a significant barrier to improved quality and support in the pediatric realm, Cottor said.

Death is inevitable. It's time we learned to talk about it. MedPageToday; by Nidhi Bhaskar; 8/13/24 By fostering honest and compassionate discussions, we can provide patients with more dignity. Years ago, in a busy emergency department, I found myself joining my mentor at the bedside of an elderly man experiencing chest pain. After completing the physical exam, the doctor unceremoniously changed gears to abruptly ask our patient, "If your heart were to stop beating, do you want us to do everything?" Between the stress of the situation and the vague and awkward delivery of the question, our patient seemed (understandably) overwhelmed. So was I. ... End-of-life conversations can feel like a "word soup" of sorts ... it is easy for patients and providers alike to feel lost. ... Providers must also consider the nuances of cultural attitudes towards death; the location and family arrangements surrounding a person at the end of life; and the varying emotional responses and feelings of decision paralysis surrounding how one dies and how one feels about dying.Editor's Note: For a related article in our newsletter today, read "Examining the relationship between rural and urban clinicians’ familiarity with patients and families and their comfort with palliative and end-of-life care communication."

Inside one hospice’s battle for survival as it faces ‘incoming tsunami’ of need SwiftTeleca in South Boston, Virginia, with this article about Swindon, United Kingdom; by Shawn Butlere; 8/13/24Swindon’s Prospect Hospice is facing a £1million deficit this year. Hospices are receiving “woefully inadequate” funding to deal with an “incoming tsunami” of patients needing end-of-life care, a desperate sector leader has warned. ... Chief executive Jeremy Lune ... said: “Hospice funding is woefully inadequate at the moment – that is a fact. In the last 10 years, the amount that we receive from the NHS has not increased in real terms at all. “The cost of living crisis and so on mean that in real terms, it has decreased. And the need for hospice services is increasing. With an ageing population, people are living longer, they’re living with more conditions, and the funding simply doesn’t reflect that.”Editor's Note: USA hospice leaders, what themes and potential threats to our hospices are you seeing, especially in light of the new CMS Hospice Final Rule?

Perfecting healthcare’s 360° consumer-centric strategy Guidehouse; 8/13/24 To ably compete in today’s healthcare environment while meeting their mission of quality patient care, health systems must make patient access and the consumer experience a core value across their entire organization. That means placing a relentless focus on reducing friction to meet customer expectations and aligning people and tech resources with standardization and scale. ...