Literature Review

Veterans enjoy early Thanksgiving meal ABC KOLO 8 NewsNow, Reno, NV; by Terri Russell; 11/22/24 More than 250 Veterans and their families gathered at the Washoe County Senior Center to eat an early Thanksgiving meal courtesy of several local businesses and organizations. ... With such a large crowd it was all hands-on deck. But those who came to help say they were more than willing to lend a helping hand. “I knew it was above and beyond fabulous,” says Katie Hurst, with St. Mary’s Hospice of Northern Nevada. “And being in hospice business it is really important to reach out to those who are on this side of their journey. And we couldn’t find a better calling.” Plenty of donations came in to pay for the meal. ... This won’t be the last time Veterans get together for the holidays. Another meal is planned for Christmas on December 19th at the Washoe County Senior Center.

Addus taking a cautious approach to hospice deals Hospice News; by Jim Parker; 11/22/24 Valuations in the hospice space have led Addus Homecare (Nasdaq: ADUS) to take a more conservative approach to hospice transactions as it actively seeks home health and personal care deals. Hospice multiples reach record highs in 2020 and 2021, as much as 26x. Since then the price tags have reportedly come down, but they haven’t gone far enough, according to Addus President and COO Brad Bickham. The company also seeks to bulk up its home health business relative to the scale of its hospice operations. “First and foremost is the pricing aspect of it. But secondly, it’s probably sequencing to a certain extent,” Bickham said during the Stephens Annual Investment Conference. “Our hospice platform is certainly significantly larger than our home health platform. We have found that home health does a good job of feeding hospice in the markets where we do have that overlap. It’d be good to essentially catch up our home and health platform at the hospice side, and certainly it’s a cheaper valuation.”

Health care workers rally at Kaiser Permanente headquarters in Pasadena as strike enters fifth week Pasadena Now, Pasadena, CA; by Eddie Rivera; 11/22/24 More than 300 Kaiser Permanente mental health workers and their supporters marched Thursday, November 21 around the healthcare giant’s regional headquarters on Walnut Street in Pasadena, marking the fifth week of a statewide strike over working conditions and patient care concerns. The Pasadena demonstration, coordinated with a similar rally in Oakland, highlighted tensions between Kaiser Permanente and its mental health professionals represented by the National Union of Healthcare Workers. ... “We’re tired of the working conditions that Kaiser’s providing for us,” said Marisela Calvillo, a licensed clinical social worker who led the demonstration. ... Calvillo said she was seeing patients every 30 minutes without breaks while struggling to complete required documentation during lunch periods. She said therapists are given approximately two minutes per patient for administrative tasks, affecting her caseload of 86 patients. 

Early palliative care linked to better end-of-life outcomes in ovarian cancer AJMC - The American Journal of Managed Care, Cranbury, NJ; by Brooke McCormick; 11/22/24 Initiating palliative care (PC) more than 3 months before death was associated with improved quality of care and reduced care intensity at the end of life (EOL) for decedents with ovarian cancer, according to a study published in JAMA Network Open. Alongside oncologic treatment, the American Society of Clinical Oncology recommends all patients with advanced cancer receive early, dedicated PC within 8 weeks of diagnosis. PC benefits include prolonged survival, enhanced quality of EOL care, and improved patient and caregiver quality of life (QOL). Early referral to specialist PC is also linked to less aggressive EOL care. 

Hospital at home saves lives and money: CMS report American Medical Association; by Jennifer Lubell; 11/22/24 A federal report to Congress on the Acute Hospital Care at Home initiative shows that at-home acute care produces lower mortality rates and post-discharge spending than traditional inpatient care while also yielding positive feedback from patients and caregivers. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) launched the home-care initiative in response to the COVID-19 public health emergency, granting waivers to individual hospitals to provide Medicare patients with inpatient-level home care. With 358 approved hospitals across 137 health systems in 39 states since its start in November 2020, this innovation in care delivery has become an important feature of the Medicare program. ... Importantly, these programs demonstrate clinically, and often more cost-effective care. “Numerous studies have demonstrated that many types of care that are currently delivered in an office or facility could be provided at home, with clinically appropriate, high quality, and cost-effective outcomes,” wrote the authors of the AMA report. About 15–20% of emergency and urgent care services and up to 35% of hospice services are capable of being administered at home. As home care continues to evolve, this service could provide up to 25% of post-acute and long-term care in the home. 

Hospices have long road ahead on improving health equity Hospice News; by Holly Vossel; 11/21/24 Prolific health disparities have driven hospices to implement various strategies to improve diversity, equity and inclusion among underserved patient populations. Some providers say the needle has much farther to go toward equitable access. End-of-life care models have increasingly diversified to reach a broader range of patients with different beliefs, values and spiritual outlooks, according to Altonia Garrett, COO of Blue Ridge Hospice. Garrett is also executive director of the Virginia-based hospice’s Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Belonging Committee. Yet, hospice providers lack a full scope of understanding around the nuanced challenges impeding utilization and the ways to more effectively address unmet patient needs, Garrett said.  

United Hospice celebrates success with “A Night in the Catskills" [$215,000] MidHudson News, Hudson Valley, NY; by News Staff; 11/24/24 In late October United Hospice held its annual gala, “A Night in the Catskills” and a silent auction at the Hilton Pearl River which drew more than 300 attendees and was the most successful gala in the organization’s history, raising more than $215,000. During the event, CEO Cara Pace recalled all of United Hospice’s achievements this past year, including the successful start of a new and innovative program, Living Well New York, in which palliative physicians make recommendations to patients’ primary care teams that will ultimately improve the quality of life for every patient and their families who participate in the program. 

$11,650 raised by October’s Annual United Hospice Service luncheon Sanilac Broadcasting Company - WMIC/WTGV/WBGV, Sandusky, MI; 11/15/24 The Annual United Hospice Service Luncheon, held on Saturday, October 5th, 2024, at the Marlette Elementary School was a success with a total of 130 tickets sold. The event included a delightful afternoon featuring a catered lunch, a prize-drawing raffle, a silent auction, and a lively fundraising auction hosted by Aspire Rural Health System’s own co-CEO, Andy Daniels. Businesses donated over 120 items for the fundraising auction such as Holiday-themed baskets, quilts, gift certificates, ground beef, a chartered fishing day, merchandise, crafts, and more. The event raised a total of $11,650 for United Hospice Service.

Challenges in health care for persons with multiple chronic conditions—where to go and how to get there?JAMA Open Network; Gregory M. Ouellet, MD, MHS; Jennifer A. Ouellet, MD, MHPE; Mary E. Tinetti, MD; 10/24Approximately 75% of older adults, and more than one-third of all adults receiving health care, have MCC [multiple chronic conditions]. As has been well reported, siloed, disease-based health care for persons with MCC may be burdensome, fragmented, of uncertain benefit and potential harm, and not aligned with individuals’ health priorities ... The result of all this is the imposition of unwanted and unhelpful care, neglect of potentially helpful interventions that do not fall under the narrow confines of disease-based care, and inattention to what matters to each person. Finally, quality and payment metrics focused on what matters to the individual will both encourage, and result from, a push to whole-person care.

Comorbid depression in patients with head and neck cancer compared with other cancersJAMA Otolaryngology-Head & Neck Surgery; Marina C. Martinez; Andrey Finegersh, MD, PhD; Fred M. Baik, MD; F. Chris Holsinger, MD; Heather M. Starmer, PhD, CCC-SLP, BCS-S; Lisa A. Orloff, MD; John B. Sunwoo, MD; Davud Sirjani, MD; Vasu Divi, MD; Michelle M. Chen, MD, MHS; 10/24This cohort study found that patients with HNC were twice as likely to screen positive for depression on a validated survey than those with other cancers, despite having similar rates of self-reported depression and depression medication use. These findings suggest that self-reporting of depression may result in underreporting and undertreatment in this population and, thus, a need for further work in developing interventions to improve identification of and optimize treatment for patients with HNC and comorbid depression.

Local hospice organization announces dementia care program for patients and caregivers Southern Maryland News Net; 11/19/24 Hospice of the Chesapeake has launched a new and innovative dementia care program for dementia patients and their caregivers. The program, in collaboration with The National Partnership for Healthcare and Hospice Innovation (NPHI), The Center to Advance Palliative Care (CAPC) and Aliviado Health, includes free access to the “Dementia Care Patient & Caregiver Resource Guide,” which provides the best-in-class resource for dementia care. The goal is to improve the quality of life for dementia patients, reduce hospitalizations and ease burdens for families and caregivers.Editor's note: The National Partnership for Healthcare and Hospice Innovation (NPHI) is a sponsor for our newsletter.

Bringing stories to life, and death: Why animated movies are more than entertainment for kids The Stony Brook Press; 11/19/24 ... Whether it is the parents of the protagonist dying in the first few minutes in Frozen or the epic finale where the villain succumbs to a fatal fate like in The Hunchback of Notre Dame or The Princess and the Frog, it is somewhat of an oxymoron to call animated movies “childish,” as they often deal with serious topics. These movies are not outliers; there are videos dedicated to Disney’s “body count,” which counts how many characters have died in Disney movies. While these films may be magical or fantastical in plot, the moral truths of death and life covered in them often stir conversations about mortality. “Despite the fact that we would love to have people or animals or our loved ones forever, death is inevitable,” explained Bonnie Nickels, co-writer of the study End-of-Life in Disney and Pixar Films: An opportunity for Engaging in Difficult Conversation. “We can use these films as opportunities to introduce our young viewers and our young children to this idea.” To Nickels, these movies can create a dialogue between parents and children about dying and even model coping methods. “The fact that it’s a common feature in these films, kind of reiterates this idea that it’s common in life.” Editor's note: What movies will your intergenerational family watch through the holidays? This article's referenced study--"End-of-Life in Disney and Pixar Films"--describes, "A content analysis of 57 movies resulted in a total of 71 character deaths. For different generations, what reactions do you remember having experienced yourself, or from others with Bambi's mother; The Lion King's Mufasa; Frozen's parents of the two sisters; Coco's family members? And, what messages were instilled for young Baby Boomers by the always "wicked" stepmothers? Yes, important conversations abound. Click here for a related article, "15 Saddest Disney Deaths, Ranked." 

The health care job that's most in demand in each state, based on data MSN; by Paxtvn Merten; 11/17/24 ... The job? Home health and personal care aides. The U.S. expects to add close to a million jobs in this profession over the next decade. ... After COVID-19 devastated nursing homes, surveys have found fewer Americans are willing to live in them as they age. As a result, even more families may discover ways to use full-time or part-time in-home aides for end-of-life care. An analysis including more than 70 other health care jobs projected all but three states to add home health and personal care aides in the highest numbers. In just three states—Colorado, Florida, and South Dakota—did registered nurse job growth outpace home health. ... Medical Technology Schools identified the health care positions expected to add the most jobs in each state and Washington D.C. from 2020 to 2030, using Bureau of Labor Statistics data compiled by Projections Central. States are listed in alphabetical order, and the top three health care positions by the number of new jobs are provided. ...Editor's note: Click here for the US Department of Labor's "Projections Central" for state-specific data and projections.