Literature Review

Local experts say number of people using hospices has decreased despite benefits Virginia News, by Emaryi Williams; 1/8/24According to a recent report by American Health Rankings, Virginia placed 30th nationally in deceased medicare patients who used hospice care, even though it was 17th nationally for senior health care. Local experts say they are seeing fewer opting for hospice care and are concerned about what it means for members of our community and their families who may need it.

Hospice and home health care in Estes Park: A 2024 updateEstes Park Trail Gazette, by Dawn Wilson; 1/5/24Estes Park Health Board of Directors and management made the difficult decision to eliminate in-home hospice and home health care services as part of a plan to bring the hospital into a financially secure position. Sunday, Dec. 31, 2023, marked the last day that Estes Park Health provided these services.

To affiliate or acquire: Trends in nonprofit hospice consolidationHospice News, by Jim Parker; 1/5/24Recent years have seen an uptick in consolidation activity among nonprofits in the hospice space. Increasingly, nonprofit s are pursuing acquisitions and affiliations, as well as forming regional collaboratives. To achieve these kinds of growth, hospices must consider whether they should affiliate or buy another company outright. Each approach comes with benefits and risks.

Nursing home struggles expected to worsen hospital backlogsMcKnights Long-Term Care News, by Josh Henreckson; 1/4/24Nursing homes’ familiar struggles with insufficient staffing and insurance reimbursements are contributing to growing backlogs of patients awaiting throughput from hospitals to post-acute care across the US. Those waitlists are set to grow more congested in 2024 and cause even bigger disruption throughout the US healthcare system, according to recent state-level reports.Editor's Notes: Hospice leaders, how might your organization help reduce these backlogs and delays?

West Monroe’s 3 healthcare outlooks for 2024: AI, cost pressures, dealmakingMedCityNews, by Marissa Plescia; 12/29/23 In a recent report, consulting firm West Monroe laid out three trends for the healthcare industry to watch out for:

What is hospice care? 6 myths about this end-of-life optionNPRDecember 28, 2023... Former President Jimmy Carter, the longest-living former president in American history at age 99, joined those numbers in February when his family announced he was entering hospice. ... Many assumed the decision meant that Carter wouldn’t be alive for much longer. But contrary to popular belief, hospice care isn’t necessarily only for people who have just a few days to live, nor does it mean giving up care entirely. ... Here’s the truth about some of the myths about hospice care and how it works.

Hospice volunteer rule to return in ‘24 Requirement to resume in U.S., stateArkansas Democrat-Gazette (Little Rock, AR)December 24, 2023On Jan. 1, 2024, the U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services will reinstate rules that, among other things, require volunteers to provide at least 5% of care hours at hospices across the country, including in Arkansas. Those rules were lifted during the first years of the covid pandemic ...

Pohai Malama Adult Residential Care Home hosts open houseHawaii Tribune-Herald (Hilo, HI)December 25, 2023Hilo, HI—After closing its doors to inpatient services last year, Pohai Malama will be reopening as an adult residential care home beginning next year. Hawaii Care Choices, formerly Hospice of Hilo, earlier this month announced the opening of the Pohai Malama Adult Residential Care Home to a room full of board members, supporters and community leaders. The former 12-bed hospice and palliative care inpatient facility, located at 590 Kapiolani St. in Hilo, was closed in November 2022 after operating for 10 years due to changing preferences from patients, many who preferred to be treated in their homes. 

Hospice, Home Health Providers ‘Squeezing Turnips’ Competing for Clinical StaffHospice NewsDecember 20, 2023Hospice and home health care providers’ recruitment and retention strategies have narrowed their focus on workers’ key priorities, with organizational culture among the heaviest hitters on their lists. Amid workforce shortages, hospice and home health providers are often at a disadvantage when it comes to competing with other health care organizations that can have greater financial resources, according to Bill English, president and CEO of Accurate Home Care. 

Assisted-suicide bills in Mass. present risks to patients, publicBy Madelyn Hicks, MDWorcester (MA) Telegram & GazetteDecember 17, 2023The Massachusetts Legislature’s Committee on Public Health is considering two bills that would legalize physician-assisted suicide in the commonwealth. As a Massachusetts physician, as a psychiatrist who treats persons with mental health problems, and as a daughter who has dealt with the loss of a parent to a debilitating illness, I am concerned by flaws in these bills that present risks to individual patients and the public. Trust in the health care system would likely be damaged for many, but especially for communities that have experienced health care inequity who have not been consulted on these bills. Disparities already exist in end-of-life care so that Black, Hispanic and LGBTQ patients are less likely to receive palliative care or hospice care. 

Washington Post Reports Highlight Assisted Living Resident Elopements and Staffing Problems, Industry Pushes BackSenior Housing NewsDecember 17, 2023A new Washington Post investigation has detailed dozens of incidents where senior living residents have wandered away and died as well as “bare-bones” staffing levels at communities across the country. In one article published over the weekend, the Post examined thousands of cases since 2018 where senior living residents wandered away from their communities, resulting in nearly 100 deaths in that time. ... The articles underscore the challenges senior living operators will surely have in the coming years, in terms of both staffing and managing communities and maintaining positive perceptions among the public. 

Hospices’ Unanswered Questions—Filling the Research GapsHospice NewsDecember 14, 2023Research around hospice care has come a long way. But data gaps exist when it comes to expanding understanding of some aspects of end-of-life care delivery. A range of researchers has amassed a growing base of data on hospice, with some common themes tied to quality outcomes, costs, length of stay and general inpatient care. ... Having more information around successful care delivery models and training processes could impact the ability for hospices to foster growth and improve sustainable clinical capacity. 

Proportion of hospice users declines while industry undergoes shift, NHPCO report findsMcKnight’s Home Care DailyDecember 14, 2023The proportion of Medicare beneficiaries who died on hospice continued to decline in 2021, according to the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization’s 2023 Fact and Figures report. ... Notably, the number of hospice users rose by thousands since 2019, but this growth was unable to outpace the proportion of Medicare beneficiaries who died without receiving any hospice care.