Literature Review

A dozen seniors at risk of being evicted from assisted living facilities in Stanislaus County NBC KCRA-3, Newman, CA; by Andres Valle; 5/15/25 The closure of two senior residential care facilities in Stanislaus County has left over a dozen older residents, including hospice patients, scrambling to find new homes with just days' notice. This decision comes after the passing of Kelsy Ramos, the licensee of Golden Age Living facilities in Turlock and Newman. Ramos, a Turlock native reported missing earlier this month, was found dead last Monday in Selma. The California Department of Social Services ordered the closure with no licensed manager in place, citing the absence of regulatory oversight. 

AAHPM Announces New CEO: Pierre M. Désy, MPH, CAEAAHPM announcement; 5/16/25The American Academy of Hospice and Palliative Medicine (AAHPM) is pleased to announce the selection of its new Chief Executive Officer, Pierre M. Désy, MPH, CAE. Désy, will begin serving in the role on July 23, 2025.

SERIOUS ILLNESS: 10 ways to embrace Mother’s Day with a seriously ill mother Roze Room Hospice, Culver City, CA; Website; retrieved from the internet 5/8/2025Spending Mother’s Day with a seriously ill mother can be emotional, but it’s also an opportunity to create meaningful and loving memories. Here are 10 ways to embrace Mother’s Day with a seriously ill mother:

“I’m as mad as hell and I’m not going to take this anymore!”JAMA Neurology; by David N. Korones; 4/25So shouted news broadcaster Howard Beale in the iconic 1976 film “Network” as he decried pollution, unemployment, inflation, crime, and all that was wrong in the world back then. And so shouted I, as I slammed down the phone after yet another denial from an insurance company—this time denial of treatment for an 8-year-old little girl with a brain tumor.Every day the phone, email, and text messages mount: an antinausea medication is not approved, oral chemotherapy is denied to a child because it is in liquid form, and only tablets are approved, brain surgery is denied because the patient has the misfortune of not living in the same state as the neurosurgeon who has the unique skill set to remove it, an insurance company that had previously approved an essential therapy for one of my patients now, for inexplicable reasons, denies refills half way through her prescribed course of treatment. Perhaps the more we push back, send them bills for our time, follow that up with bill collectors, call our congressional representatives, and summon our hospital leadership, we can gather a chorus of physicians, patients, hospital leaders, and politicians who all open their windows and, following Howard Beale’s lead, scream in unison that they, too, are mad as hell, and it is long past time to change this unjust system of care. To paraphrase Howard Beale, “our children, our patients are human beings, goddammit, their lives have value!”

Dementia patient discharged from hospice over Medicare requirement. Here’s why it happened WKMG-6, Deltona, FL; by Erika Briguglio and Louis Bolden; 5/14/25A Volusia County family is left scrambling after their loved one is abruptly dropped from hospice care. To qualify for hospice, patients must have a life expectancy of six months or less. However, for dementia patients, the prognosis can be unpredictable. Hospice care can be extended as long as the patient continues to meet Medicare requirements. Unfortunately, these requirements are why Amy Yates lost coverage for her 91-year-old grandmother. ... “I think it’s she hasn’t died fast enough, and it’s costing them money that they don’t want to spend,” Yates told News 6. ... What Yates’ family is dealing with is what Medicare calls live discharge, and they are not alone. The Hospice Foundation of America reports that 17% of people in 2022 who were admitted to hospice care were discharged; about 6% of the total caseload was discharged because they no longer met Medicare requirements for care under the hospice benefit.Editor's note: What are your hospice's stats for live discharges? This factor--with the face-to-face recertification requirement--is crucial. Unfortunately, too many hospices misused President Jimmy Carter's extraordinarily long Length of Stay (LOS) with misleading information about hospice care. These hospices--whether intentional or not--chose to significantly water down end-of-life care and to never mention anything about a basic recertification process. Engaging, user-friendly language can be used with integrity, authenticity, and patient/caregiver empowerment. What messaging does your hospice voice? Do you present a mature, balanced voice, for the sake of the seriously ill person and their family? Or do you ignore the patient/family's timing and choice for the sake of your bottom line, while using up the person's ultimate Medicare days allowed for hospice care? Dig deeply into your data. Dare to examine your organization's motives and outcomes.

DOJ reportedly rejects Amedisys’ divestiture plan as part of UnitedHealth Group deal McKnights Home Care; by Adam Healy; 5/12/25 The Department of Justice reportedly has rejected Amedisys’ plan to divest more than 100 locations in its plan to be acquired by UnitedHealth Group subsidiary Optum, according to CTFN, which tracks mergers and acquisitions. The DOJ decision could spell trouble for the future of Amedisys’ deal with Optum. The Department of Justice reportedly has rejected Amedisys’ plan to divest more than 100 locations in its plan to be acquired by UnitedHealth Group subsidiary Optum, according to CTFN, which tracks mergers and acquisitions. The DOJ decision could spell trouble for the future of Amedisys’ deal with Optum.

National Alliance: Medicaid cuts would adversely impact home-, community-based services Hospice News; by Jim Parker; 5/12/25 A tax bill currently before Congress could lead to Medicaid cuts that would inhibit access to home- and community-based services (HCBS). The bill, which promises sweeping tax and spending cuts, currently is undergoing a reconciliation process. The amount of tax cuts could reach $4.5 trillion, with spending cuts in the area of $4.5 billion, with a significant portion coming from Medicaid. However, the bill remains a work in progress for now with some resistance to the proposed cuts from both Democrats and a contingent of Republicans. The National Alliance for Care at Home released a statement Monday opposing the Medicaid reductions.

To forgive is to set a prisoner free and discover that the prisoner was you. ~Lewis B. Smedes

Dying ‘Beautifully’ in the Rio Grande Valley: Rivera-Burciaga embeds end-of-life nursing into UTRGV curriculum: National Nurses Week is May 6-12 UTRGV, The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley - The Newsroom, Rio Grande Valley, TX; by Karen Villarreal; 5/9/25 Death, for the most part, makes people uncomfortable. But not UTRGV’s Dr. Andrya Rivera-Burciaga.  After a personal loss early in her nursing career drove her to seek advanced certification in hospice and palliative care, she has made it her life’s work to normalize conversations about death and dying.   ... While Rivera-Burciaga’s efforts successfully have woven palliative care into the UTRGV nursing curriculum, her Ph.D. research on the unique cultural perspective of death and dying among Mexican Americans aims to further tailor the care that nurses provide to end-of-life patients in South Texas.  ... Through clinical interviews, Rivera-Burciaga found that many individuals of the Mexican American culture are afraid to die – despite engaging in Día de los Muertos, a celebration of death every November. “We've built a compassionate community for the dying, yet we don't say it by name. Many Mexican Americans in the United States believe that to talk about death invites it. Or, that we don't have time to be depressed, or that even in mourning men don't cry,” she said.

If you want to lift yourself up, lift up someone else. ~Booker T. Washington

A narrative review—Characterizing palliative care curriculum aimed at high school adolescents and young adultsIllness, Crisis and Loss; Austin B. Elder; 4/25The aim of this narrative review is to explore the characteristics of palliative care curriculum developed for high school adolescent and young adults (AYAs). Characteristics including a variety of designs, methods, and strategies were all identified to have positive participation, feedback, and experiences from high school AYA being provided palliative care curriculum. Conclusions: The literature indicates that the use of subject matter experts within palliative care curriculum for high school students is a core characteristic in meeting the World Health Organizations recommendation to embed palliative care curriculum into public awareness strategies.

Palliative and end-of-life care in stroke: A scientific statement from the American Heart AssociationStroke; by Claire J Creutzfeldt, Julia Bu, Amber Comer, Susan Enguidanos, Barbara Lutz, Maisha T Robinson, Darin B Zahuranec, Robert G Holloway, American Heart Association Stroke Council, Council on Cardiovascular and Stroke Nursing, Council on Clinical Cardiology; 2/25Stroke has multidimensional effects on patients and their families because of threats to personhood, prognostic uncertainty, and the need to adapt to functional changes after stroke. Palliative care has evolved as both a specialty and a skillset with a goal to improve communication about goals of care and quality of life for patients and their families that emphasizes a holistic, all-person approach. After stroke, palliative care needs (eg, to address pain and physical, emotional, psychosocial, and spiritual distress) are insufficiently addressed by current models of care. Integrating palliative care principles is fundamental in all stages of stroke and should include strategies to improve communication about prognosis and goals of care, address psychosocial needs such as coping with loss, navigating complex health care systems, and preparing for death when necessary.