Literature Review

[UK] Campaign focuses on hospice's work: [This is Hospice Care] The Free Library; by Sam Volpe; 2/17/25 Tyneside Hospice is taking part in a new national campaign highlighting their "vital role" - while one son has paid tribute to the care his mother received in her final days. St Oswald's Hospice in Newcastle is one of more than 140 hospices taking part in a new campaign called "This is Hospice Care" which is designed to demystify the role hospices play in our communities. [England, Scotland and Wales] Click here for "This is Hospice Care | UK," on the St. Oswald's Hospice website.

Celebrating Black History Month: 12 Black American medical pioneers Brighton Hospice; blog from 2/24/21, still relevant todayThese trailblazing clinicians, researchers, inventors, and advocates broke barriers, shattered stereotypes, and advanced medicine in this country and beyond. 

Learning from death: New memoir If We Never Meet Again imparts lessons from working with hospice patientsThe MarCom Journal, Charleston, SC; by Globe Newswire; 2/6/25While the topic of death is generally considered taboo, English teacher turned hospice administrator Matthew Cornett believes there is much to be learned from death. After becoming an empty nester, Cornett left the classroom behind and began a second career in hospice care. And the more time he spent with people as they approached the end of their life, the more he realized that their deaths had meaning. And what emerged from those final moments was something profound. Hoping to make others feel more comfortable when it comes to preparing for and talking about death, he presents a memoir of his journey into the world of hospice care. In If We Never Meet Again, Cornett chronicles his experiences providing compassion and support to hospice patients while adjusting to his new role. Finding inspiration in his patient’s “death stories,” he found himself on an unexpected path of self-discovery. Cornett’s personal reflections on these intimate and emotional interactions encourage readers to reconsider how they view death and dying.

Behind the scenes: Caring for the caregivers Harvard Magazine; by Lydialyel Gibson; 1/30/25 When I was in seventh grade, my best friend’s father was diagnosed with early onset Alzheimer’s. He was in his late 50s. ... My sharpest memories from that time are of my friend’s shock and grief as her father deteriorated, and of her mother’s incredible stamina. ... That was more than 30 years ago. ... [When] I heard about the work of Christine Ritchie, a geriatrician and palliative care physician who studies the caregiver experience, I knew I wanted to talk to her. Ritchie directs the Dementia Care Collaborative at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) and teaches at Harvard Medical School, and has been doing this research for decades. ... The caregivers are the heart of this story. Across the country there are more than 11 million other people like them, who continue to fill these difficult, precious, necessary roles. [Click on the title's link to continue reading this important article.]

What can we learn from the dying? Newscastle's News Letter Journal (NLJ), Newcastle, WY; by Kelly Evans-Hullinger, MD; 1/26/25 For the last five years, I have had the great privilege of serving my local health system as Medical Director for Home Hospice. Every week I sit in a meeting with the multidisciplinary caretakers on this team ... Patients facing their own deaths want to talk about their lives. Our staff frequently tries to facilitate what they call a “life review” in which a patient can openly talk about their childhood, family, career, service, and sometimes their regrets. This is therapeutic for the dying patient and their loved ones.  ... I have recently thought about this particular human need – to reflect and remember one’s life. I take this as a reminder to both seek those stories from my own loved ones (I wish I had asked my grandmother more questions about her life) and, perhaps, to tell and write about the things in my own life I would want to be remembered after I am gone. For if there is another thing I’ve learned serving patients on hospice, it is that my death is also inevitable; but, I think, life’s finality is what gives it beauty and meaning. 

Hospice of Savannah awarded grant for safety improvements NBC WSAV Savannah News, Savannah, GA; by Eric Dorsch; 1/27/25 Hospice of Savannah Inc. (HSI) has announced it has been awarded a grant for repairs and home modifications. HSI will receive $1,999,111 in Older Adults Home Modification Program grant funding to complete safety and functional home modifications and limited repairs in the primary residences of two hundred eligible homeowners and renters over age 62 with low income. The work aims to improve general safety, increase accessibility, reduce falls, and improve residents’ functional abilities in the home for their safe and successful aging in place. 

Spread some love to seniors this Valentines Day WKBN Youngstown, OH; by Dave Sess; 1/21/25 As you’re making Valentine’s Day plans, consider spreading some love to local seniors. You can make special cards or buy a thoughtful card and share the love. Home Instead is organizing the collection again this year. It has three schools already committed to making cards as it hopes to double last year’s total of 1,000. Each of the Valentine’s Day cards will carry a heartfelt message to seniors in nursing homes and assisted living communities that they’re loved, appreciated and remembered. ... The seniors will also receive flowers from Harmony Hospice. “These seniors appreciate anything from a simple smile to a card or a flower and just a simple hello,” said Sara Stevens with Harmony Hospice.Editor's note: Calling community outreach professionals--what a simple, meaningful way to engage your community for meaningful, intergenerational engagement and support. Now's the time! What can you do?

Community invited to see Edina Thespians' one-act play, 'Wit' Sun Current, Coon Rapids, MN; by Alex Kautzman; 1/20/25Edina High School Thespians are ... looking forward to showing off their hard work to the community in two performances at the Edina Performing Arts Center. ... "Wit" centers on Vivian Bearing, a brilliant poetry professor, as she undergoes an experimental and extremely aggressive chemotherapy treatment. As Vivian undergoes treatment at the hands of impersonal doctors, she discovers that human compassion may be more important than intellectual wit.Editor's note: This Wit telepay is based on the 1999 Pulitzer Prize-winning play by Margaret Edson. Its 2001 television drama film was directed by Mike Nichols, written by and starring Emma Thompson. Wit has been used extensively for community and clinical education, fostering conversations about ethics, palliative care/hospice, advance directives, quality of life, and more. Click here for more information. Wit can be streamed via Max and the Max Prime Video Channel.

Michigan hospice's training empowers African Americans to dialogue Catholic Health world; by Lisa Eisenhauer; 1/16/25 Rev. Diane Smith knows the hospice education program she leads for predominantly Black churches resonates with those who enroll. ... Rev. Smith directs The African American Church Empowerment Project at Livonia, Michigan-based Angela Hospice and gives certificates those who complete the training. She is also the hospice's director of ministry engagement and chief diversity officer. The Empowerment Project isn't about promoting Angela Hospice's services, Rev. Smith explains, but rather about educating the community on hospice care and listening to concerns about end-of-life issues. Rev. Smith sees another primary reason for the disconnect between Black Americans and hospice providers. She says many people of color have a distrust of the medical community that is rooted in historically being both denied care and exploited ...

I’m moving forward and facing the uncertainty of aging California Healthline; by Judith Graham; 1/15/25 It takes a lot of courage to grow old. I’ve come to appreciate this after conversations with hundreds of older adults over the past eight years for nearly 200 “Navigating Aging” columns. Time and again, people have described what it’s like to let go of certainties they once lived with and adjust to new circumstances. These older adults’ lives are filled with change. They don’t know what the future holds except that the end is nearer than it’s ever been. And yet, they find ways to adapt. To move forward. To find meaning in their lives. And I find myself resolving to follow this path as I ready myself for retirement. Patricia Estess, 85, of the Brooklyn borough of New York City spoke eloquently about the unpredictability of later life when I reached out to her as I reported a series of columns on older adults who live alone, sometimes known as “solo agers.” ...

Bestselling author: I asked 26,000 people around the world their biggest regrets—these were the top 4 NBC News NECN Channel 4, Boston, MA; by Aston Jackson, CNBC; 1/11/25 Living life without regrets is impossible, says bestselling author Daniel Pink. "Everybody has regrets. It's one of the most common emotions that human beings have," said Pink, in a podcast episode that published last month. "And yet, we've been sold such a bill of goods about positivity and being positive all the time that when we feel regret, we think we're the only one." Pink combed through decades of research and surveyed more than 26,000 people from 130 countries about their biggest regrets for his 2022 book, "The Power of Regret," according to his website. Most of those people struggled with four core regrets:

The anonymous advantage: How anonymous patient surveys can improve healthcare outcomes Forbes; by Lauren Parr; 1/9/24 When it comes to improving patient care, feedback is the compass that guides healthcare providers in the right direction. But here’s the catch, traditional feedback often fails to capture honest patient opinions due to fear of judgment, privacy concerns and other potential repercussions. This is where anonymous surveys prove to be valuable. Studies have demonstrated that anonymous surveys yield more candid responses, leading to a deeper understanding of patient experiences. This increased transparency fosters trust between patients and healthcare providers, enabling a more collaborative approach to care. Free from fear of judgment or consequences, patients can provide honest feedback, highlighting strengths and identifying areas for improvement. This ultimately leads to better healthcare outcomes.

‘Getting comfortable with the uncomfortable’: Coloradans gather at Death Cafes to discuss mortalityKUNC; by Gabe Allen; 1/1/25 On the first Sunday afternoon of each month, a cozy table tucked between bookshelves in the back corner of the Bean Fosters coffee shop in Golden becomes a portal to the other side. Agroup of people, some newcomers and some regulars, gather to eat homemade baked goods, drink tea and coffee and talk about the ultimate taboo: death. Karen Keeran, a death doula and former hospice aide, organizes the Golden Death Cafe. ... “It’s an open forum,” she said. “We’re here to talk about anything related to death and dying.” The discussion never strayed from mortality, yet there was a lightness and optimism to it. Death Cafe, a loosely affiliated international organization, claims to have no guiding ethos or philosophy, yet its participants are united by at least one shared idea. The belief that death is just another part of life — and we should talk about it a whole lot more.