Literature Review

Free webinar for physicians and healthcare professionals: Reducing hospital readmissions and reducing Hospital Readmissions and Length of stay in advanced illness patients VITAS Healthcare; Press Release; 9/14/26

How compassion and research build palliative care for the precision oncology era OncLive; by Ross Camidge, MD, PhD and Laura A. Petrillo, MD; 9/9/26 Drs. Camidge and Petrillo discuss Dr. Petrillo's evolution from a science-curious student to a leader in palliative care research. How This Is Building Me, hosted by world-renowned oncologist D. Ross Camidge, MD, PhD, is a podcast focused on the highs and lows, ups and downs of all those involved with cancer, cancer medicine, and cancer science across the full spectrum of life's experiences. In this episode, Dr Camidge sat down with Laura A. Petrillo, MD, a palliative care physician-investigator in the Division of Palliative Care and Geriatrics at Massachusetts General Hospital and an assistant professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School in Boston.

Inpatient palliative care utilization in gynecological malignancies: a national inpatient study Medscape; by Lydia Francis, LF and Benjamin Easow, MD; 9/3/26 Conclusions: Only 1 in 6 hospitalizations for gynecological malignancies had documented palliative care, reflecting underutilization in a population with substantial supportive care needs. Palliative care concentration among older, higher-acuity admissions suggests late referral rather than early integration. These findings support timely palliative care expansion in gynecological malignancies to improve symptom management and goal-concordant care.

Dementia associated with shorter survival, fewer days at home after hip fractureHealio; by Ashlee Moore; 9/2/26Key takeaways:

What palliative care teaches us about living well Psychology Today; by Jill Schwartz-Chevlin, MD, MBA; 9/2/26 When I reflect on my 20 years of practicing palliative medicine, the biggest takeaway is how the setting changes the work. Sitting down at a kitchen table with a patient and their family, instead of standing at a hospital bedside or in a clinic, changes the relationship. The person in front of me is in the comfort of their own home, surrounded by the people and objects that hold their history, and the conversation becomes theirs to lead. ...

Hospice Savannah launches Georgia Care Innovators to unite growing family of services WJCL-22 ABC, Savannah, GA; by Emma Hamilton; 9/3/26 After more than 45 years of providing end-of-life care, Hospice Savannah has launched Georgia Care Innovators, a new organizational identity to reflect its expanding range of healthcare and community services. Hospice Savannah will continue operating under its established name as a central part of the organization. ... “Our story has never been defined by a single service,” said Kathleen Benton, president and CEO of Georgia Care Innovators. “It’s been defined by listening to our community, recognizing unmet needs and asking how we can help.” ... The Georgia Care Innovators family includes:

Office of the Governor — Gov. Green announces $58 million federal investment to strengthen rural healthcare across Hawaiʻi The America Watch - State of Hawai'i, Honolulu, HI; by Office of the Governor, Josh Green, MD; 9/1/26 Governor Josh Green today announced $58 million in federal funding through the Rural Health Transformation Program (RHTP) to improve access to healthcare and strengthen services in rural and underserved communities across Hawaiʻi. “As a physician who has practiced in rural communities, I know that distance can determine whether someone receives care in time,” said Governor Green. “This $58 million federal investment will help us train and retain more healthcare professionals, provide new ambulances in every county and modernize emergency communications. ..."

Patient and caregiver perspectives on communication quality in tele-palliative care Journal of Palliative Medicine; by Julia I. Bandini, PhD, Elaine Li, BA, Dio Kavalieratos, PhD, FAAHPM, Natalie C. Ernecoff, PhD, Kimberly Curseen, MD, and Jordan Harrison, PhD; 8/27/26 Objective: To qualitatively explore patient and family caregiver experiences with telehealth and in-person visits for outpatient palliative care, including preferences related to mode of care and any perceived differences in communication quality by mode in a post-pandemic context. Results: Three themes emerged: (1) participants weighed convenience, symptom burden, and visit reason in choosing mode of care; (2) opinions differed on the authenticity of communication via telehealth; and (3) comfort and privacy shaped communication quality. Some patients and family caregivers perceived communication via telehealth as comparable to in-person care, while others felt in-person visits allowed for more authentic interactions. Many found that the convenience of telehealth outweighed any perceived differences in communication quality. In addition, some patients noted that without the option for telehealth, the benefits of an in-person palliative care visit may not have outweighed the travel burden.

The sandwich generation confronts the caregiver crunch: Sonia’s story IndiaCurrents; by Snigdha Sen; 8/28/26 The Indian American community is aging. As the U.S. faces a severe caregiver shortage, the community faces an even greater challenge: finding culturally and linguistically appropriate care. The Aging with Dignity project looks at efforts within and beyond the Indian community to help the "sandwich generation" care for aging parents. This is Part 1 of a three-part series.

An exploration of gratitude on well-being in hospice and palliative care familial caregiversJournal of Palliative Medicine; by Kathryn Levy, Pei C Grant, Hannah Rachiele, Gina Schuster, Jonathan L Rossi, Sheila Conboy, Andrew Gasper, Christopher W Kerr; 7/26Familial caregivers (FCGs) play a critical role in health care by providing unpaid care to loved ones with serious illness. Although caregiving is often associated with emotional and physical burden, increasing attention has been directed toward potential sources of meaning and psychological growth, including gratitude. Higher levels of gratitude were associated with greater flourishing and recognition of positive caregiving experiences and were inversely associated with caregiver strain among FCGs of hospice and palliative care patients. Future longitudinal and intervention-based research is needed to determine whether gratitude-focused approaches can improve resilience, psychological well-being, and relational connection in end-of-life caregiving.

What CMS's CY2027 home health proposal means for palliative care JD Supra; by Edo Banach and Lauren Carboni; 8/25/26  The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services’ (“CMS”) CY 2027 Home Health Prospective Payment System proposed rule (“HH PPS Proposed Rule”) confirms that community-based palliative care may be covered under the existing Medicare home health benefit-creating near-term operational questions, and longer-term strategic opportunities, for home health agencies, hospices, and other health care providers serving a frail and declining population.Key Takeaways: