Literature Review

A D-AI-alogue: What the leading edge of AI in PR looks like PRovoke Media; by Paul Holmes; 8/12/24 We talked to several leading agencies about how they are using AI to transform their business and improve communication effectiveness. ... I invited representatives of six firms on the leading edge of AI usage to talk about how AI is already impacting corporate communications. ... [From Chris Perry:]  The greatest impact I’ve seen is less on what we can do more efficiently (like using GenAI to write press releases), and more on what we can do to better, like using GenAI to understand how information now travels, making sense of cultural chaos, crafting resonant stories, and identifying others than help translate and tell them. The ultimate value is being faster and better at what we do. Not replacing jobs or reducing costs. ...

How Olympic success can offer leadership lessons The CEO Magazine; by Craig Johns; 8/12/24 As the Paris 2024 Olympic Games wrap up, the extraordinary performances of athletes offer valuable insights into leadership. High performance in both arenas hinges on precision, focus and constant improvement – lessons that can transform leadership strategies and drive success. ... 

Vatican’s changing line on end-of-life illustrates that hard cases make bad law Crux, Rome, Italy; by John L. Allen Jr.; 8/11/24 Hard cases, as the famous legal maxim holds, make bad law. The Vatican served up a reminder of the point this week with a new “little end-of-life lexicon,” which not-so-subtly amends an earlier Vatican ruling on the issue of withdrawing artificial nutrition and hydration from chronically ill patients 17 years ago. ... Today, with 17 additional years of both clinical and pastoral experience, it’s perhaps easier to accept that things aren’t always so black-and-white, and that there’s room for differing judgments in concrete cases. ...

Top news stories of the month, July 2024Teleios Collaborative Network (TCN); podcast by Chris Comeaux and Mark Cohen; 8/7/24 In this week’s podcast, Mark Cohen joins me once more for the Top News Stories for the prior month from Hospice & Palliative Care Today... The conversation covers various topics including private equity in healthcare, the increasing scrutiny of for-profit hospitals, fraud in hospice care, and the importance of trust in the hospice sector. The principal themes include the playbook of private equity playbook, the challenges faced by for-profit hospitals and their potential the impact on the Hospice sector, and the erosion of trust due to fraud.

Making your Customer Experience [CX] investment strategy work CMSWire [not to be confused with CMS=Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services]; by Jeb Dasteel, Amir Hartman, Brian P. O'Neill and Marc Madigan; 8/12/24 Uncover the key elements of a successful customer experience strategy, from capability planning to aligning with core business objectives. ... Investing in a customer experience strategy is fraught with complications and feelings. Most of us in the world of CX are here because we believe that thoughtful CX spending will make an impact on the performance of our company.Editor's Note: This article is written for a much larger scope than our hospice and palliative readership. However, it highlights the importance of tying "customers' experiences" to the company/organization's core goals and business objectives. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services' CAHPS Hospice Compare Scores [not to be confused with this CMSWire source] reflect the hospice "customer experience," from the perspective of the bereaved caregiver. While the CMS Hospice Compare site sorts these public information scores alphabetically (per location and organization), our newsletter's sponsor Hospice Analytics' National Hospice Locator sorts this same data by the highest scores, for the purpose of helping the public "consumer" find the hospice that will provide them with the best "customer experience."

Home Instead Totton launches expedited home care service to meet growing needsKMLK (AR) press release; 8/7/24Home Instead Totton has announced the launch of its new expedited home care service... This new service aims to cut down waiting times, helping clients get the care and support they need quickly and efficiently. The service is designed to meet various needs of the local community, offering a wide range of home care options. These include home visits, specialised care, health care, and live-in care. Each service is designed to address specific client needs, from daily activities to complex health conditions.Publisher's note: Is there need / opportunity for "expedited" hospice care?

Fearless hospice patient takes joyrideWest Valley View (AZ); by Lin Sue Flood; 8/7/24Don Tamuty, a beloved former Madison Unified School District teacher, had one thing left on his bucket list. The 95-year-old shared with his hospice nurse, Monisha Roe, that he would love to ride in a driverless car. Monisha and the rest of Don’s Hospice of the Valley care team knew exactly how to fulfill that wish! They booked a driverless cruise on Waymo One to take Don out to a nice restaurant.

New England hospital CEOs warn lawmakers of crisis in rural health care systemMainebiz; by Laurie Schreiber; 8/8/24MaineHealth’s CEO was one of three in the Northeast who recently told federal lawmakers that rural health care systems are in crisis. “As a family physician by training, it has been difficult to watch our rural communities struggle to maintain access to high-quality care for their residents,” said Dr. Andrew Mueller. “Our proposals align with, and support, our MaineHealth vision of ‘working together so our communities are the healthiest in America.’”

Rescue from above: How drones may narrow emergency response timesKFF Health News; by Michelle Andrews; 7/22/24Starting in September, if someone in Clemmons, North Carolina, calls 911 to report a cardiac arrest, the first responder on the scene may be a drone carrying an automated external defibrillator, or AED. “The idea is for the drone to get there several minutes before first responders,” such as an emergency medical technician or an ambulance, said Daniel Crews, a spokesperson for the sheriff’s office in Forsyth County, where Clemmons is located. The sheriff’s office is partnering on the project with local emergency services, the Clinical Research Institute at Duke University, and the drone consulting firm Hovecon. “The ultimate goal is to save lives and improve life expectancy for someone experiencing a cardiac episode,” Crews said.Publisher's note: As with all things tech, when and how might drones be used in hospice?

Butte hospice workers help patients focus on livingKBZK7 (MT); by Meagan Thompson; 8/7/24Hospice care is generally seen as a last resort for the end of life but for Bonnie Dwyer and her husband John, the hospice care she has been receiving has provided reassurance and even joy... Leighann McCauley, the director of nursing at Honeybee Hospice was on call the weekend Bonnie’s condition became severe. Thanks to some quick thinking and creativity, McCauley and her team addressed the wound and her continuing care with the Honeybee staff has made a difference in her life.

COVID-19 falls to No. 10 cause of death in USAP; 8/9/24U.S. death rates fell last year for all age groups compared with 2022, federal health officials said Thursday. Here’s what the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data showed:

Violent dementia patients leave nursing home staffers and residents ‘scared to death’KFF Health News; by Jordan Rau; 8/9/24Violent altercations between residents in long-term care facilities are alarmingly common. Across the country, residents in nursing homes or assisted living centers have been killed by other residents who weaponized a bedrail, shoved pillow stuffing into a person’s mouth, or removed an oxygen mask. A recent study in JAMA Network Open of 14 New York assisted living homes found that, within one month, 15% of residents experienced verbal, physical, or sexual resident-on-resident aggression. Another study found nearly 8% of assisted living residents engaged in physical aggression or abuse toward residents or staff members within one month. Dementia residents are especially likely to be involved in altercations because the disease damages the parts of the brain affecting memory, language, reasoning, and social behavior.

Hospices face ‘hard roads’ in budgeting for sustainable growthHospice News; by Holly Vossel; 8/9/24Hospice budgeting practices hinge on several factors, according to Matt Chadwick, CFO of Well Care Health. Building a sustainable financial structure for end-of-life care delivery can be a challenging feat when navigating the impacts of patient care and staffing needs, referral streams, operational expenses, billing claim cycles and compliance factors, Chadwick said... Quality and compliance are also important pieces of a hospices’ budget and growth potential as providers experience. Case in point, hospices that fail to comply with new quality reporting requirements set forth in the 2025 payment rule face a 4% penalty... “The budget should not just be solely 100% of the financial person’s responsibility,” Rachael Feeback, revenue cycle senior product manager of home and hospice at MatrixCare by ResMed, said. “It should be a conversation with the clinical side, the operational side, so that you’re understanding your different measurements for hospice and how that translates to the budget and not solely focused on the pure dollars behind it.”